En Garde! | PC Review
En Garde! (exclamation point required) by Fireplace Games invites you to defy tyranny, defend the people, and use everything and anything to defeat your enemies. It’s a game that puts you in the very stylish boots of Adalia de Volador, a swashbuckling duelist in the vein of Zorro, Puss-in-Boots, and similar vigilantes slash freedom fighters. It is also very, very silly.
Ahoy, Matey!
The basic (and also silly) premise has you foiling the plans of the Count-Duke, the local villain slash leader who owns the military, taxes the townsfolk blind, and bribes local officials to ignore said villainy. You do this by defeating the various minions (and the Count-Duke himself, along with other notable rogues) with your trusty blade and practically the entire environment. Everything from boxes to weapon racks to chandeliers is fair game, and the game demands you use it all.
Combat pits you against various enemies, focusing on parrying and dodging attacks and using the environment to break the guards of your opponents. You’ll start out against lowly mooks who can be overpowered with pure button-mashing, then sergeants with multiple lifebars, defensive captains, and elites and duelists that require you to perfectly counter their attacks. It’s reminiscent of Sekiro in that regard, though fortunately your health is restored after you clear each arena.
Fortunately, those arenas are riddled with an absolute plethora of objects to be kicked and traps to be tripped. Kicking boxes into enemies can stun them or send them tumbling down conveniently-placed stairs, destroying their guard. Tossing explosives into a brazier can disable an entire group, allowing you to focus on a single enemy before the others recover. Fighting in this game is all about playing smart, playing defensively, and being very aware of your environment. It makes you feel like a true swashbuckling rogue, able to deftly parry and avoid the blades of any adversary.
A Pirate’s Life
The game’s focus is undoubtedly the combat, but there are also low-tension moments where you must explore the area, leap across platforms and swing across ropes. Along the way you’ll run into various findables, bits of lore and interesting tidbits about the world if you’re thorough, all of it extremely silly.
Sadly, the main campaign is only four episodes long, and each episode can generally be cleared in under an hour. Each episode does have plenty of lore objects that can be discovered, along with hidden objectives for the achievement hunters out there. Still, it’s an absolute shame that the game is so short, because what it offers is so good. It’s like Portal in that regard: a short, self-contained and polished experience.
Outside of the main story, you’ll also have access to an arena mode, giving you the opportunity to take on randomized waves of enemies. You’ll also unlock various modifiers that can affect your arena run, both positive and negative, and again…very silly.
The Final Verdict
En Garde! is available for $20 USD on Steam. While its main campaign can be beaten in a long afternoon, it provides replayability with its hidden objectives and achievements, not to mention the arena mode. It’s an easy recommendation for anyone who’s a fan of Sekiro-style combat, games that don’t take themselves too seriously, or just fun games in general.
To hear me talk more about En Garde!, be sure to listen to the August 16, 2023 episode of The Gaming Outsider Podcast around the 47:27 time stamp.
This review is based on a PC copy of En Garde! provided by Ico Partners for coverage purposes. It is exclusive to this platform.
En Garde
$19.99
Pros
- Fantastic Combat System
- Enjoyable Story and Voice Acting
- Arena Mode Adds Replayability
Cons
- Length Is an Issue
- Story Is Delivered in Episodes Rather Than an Overarching Narrative
