REPLACED Review - Mastering the R.E.A.C.H. Around

REPLACED

PC/XBOX

4/14/26

Sad Cat Studios/Thunderful Publishing

Take one look at REPLACED, coming to us from Sad Cat Studios and Thunderful Publishing, and it's difficult not to be instantly captivated by its stunning, grim, pixelated world that depicts a gritty 1980s America ravaged by war, nuclear devastation, and now overrun with AI machines. But does REPLACED represent a sign of intelligent life for cinematic platformers, or is it a genre best left in the past? Let's find out in our full review.

REPLACED immediately sets the tone as an action-packed experience. The game opens on our protagonist, well, at least the body of our protagonist, Warren Marsh, putting in the hours at Phoenix Corporation in late 1984. Warren is one of the creators of R.E.A.C.H., an artificial intelligence meant to assist with the company's morally objectionable work, and he's been toiling away for a grueling 15+ hour stretch when his creation tries to tell him to stop for the day. When Warren is not willing to heed R.E.A.C.H.'s warning, the AI doubles down with a manual override, which Warren VERY MUCH does not like. One thing leads to another, and Warren's man-trum becomes a catastrophic meltdown that leaves the entire facility in flames.

I know what you're thinking, "not another AI software that's meant to make our lives easier but ends up damaging the environment and humanity in the process," and I suppose you're right. But what we end up with is creator and creation becoming one like Elon Musk's brain chip as they are forced out of the facility and dumped into the gutters, outside of the perceived safety of the wall. Now, R.E.A.C.H. and his human host must find their way back into the Phoenix Corporation on what amounts to an approximately 10 to 12-hour adventure through a dark, cyberpunk-inspired wasteland that borrows bits of history and weaves it together with threads of fictional lore to create a story that is every bit as moving as it is topical, with plenty of humor thrown in for good measure.

To tell you any more about the narrative would be doing a disservice to you, the player, but the dialogue and notes uncovered through your time with REPLACED do a great job of providing background to the NPCs and enemies and explain the gradual unraveling of what makes us human in a way that reads a bit as a cautionary tale. Didn't Philip K. Dick teach us anything?

But enough about the story, let's talk about what makes REPLACED a video game rather than a pixelated think-piece. Gameplay is broken up into a few key segments that won't feel unfamiliar to fans of other cinematic platformers the likes of Flashback, Another World, or in more recent indie times, Ministry of Broadcast. The first thing you'll encounter, and something that remains consistent throughout this title, are the chase scenes where you flee from enemy fire, utilizing stealth to blend into your surroundings and other abilities you'll acquire to evade detection. These scenes begin simple enough and ease players into the swing of things, starting out with basic platforming over obstacles and crescendoing into epic moments that will require the player to use all skills they've learned to remain undetected.

This transitions pretty seamlessly into the platforming-focused segments. R.E.A.C.H must have uploaded some classic gaming into his data stream because he's already got the basics down from the jump. Literally, you begin with some basic jumping and clinging to ledges, swinging around poles, and climbing ladders. You can travel into the foreground and background when prompted to do so by an onscreen indicator, which further opens up exploration. Things become more involved with each new ability learned, adding a double jump using the kickback of your gun to propel you over wind turbines and an axe to cling to decaying walls. REPLACED does a pretty great job of easing players into each mechanic in a way that is clear but does not overexplain. You're taught a new skill via dialogue box and then shown how they function in the context of gameplay before they get added to your repertoire for future use, which also applies to your skills for combat, the last element of REPLACED I wanted to touch on, which is more of a focus than it is in most cinematic platforms, perhaps even drumming up memories of the Batman Arkham series.

As our Warren/R.E.A.C.H hybrid, your combat skills rely heavily on a found weapon, which is a gun that doubles as a baton to bash upon baddies. In a basic encounter, enemies can either light attack, which is indicated by yellow markers and can be parried, or a heavy attack, indicated by red markers that must be dodged. Paying close attention to these attack icons is essential to your success in battle. Later combat introduces other enemy types with heavy armor that must be broken down, shots that can be deflected, as well as more power-ups for your firearm. Seeing my Batman comparison yet?

But you didn't think you'd get out of it THAT easily, did you? Of course, large intimidating bosses with multiple forms also stand in your way, supported by their seemingly endless stream of cronies. Most bosses were easy enough to best with a little bit of patience and a mastery of the pattern, but there were a few annoying or cheap moments where it did not feel that my failure was deserved. It is what it is (I'm still a little mad about it).

R.E.A.C.H. will collect many things through exploration, including upgrades to health and med kits. Eventually, he will also be able to generate additional energy for his gun. There's no shortage of collectibles either, like notes, posters, and music, which are neatly cataloged in your 80s-themed personal computer that looks something like the lovechild of a classic Walkman and the Dell MP3 player I had in the early 2000s when I couldn't afford an iPod. These collectibles do give you a bit more incentive to take your time in exploring so you can find everything REPLACED is hiding. There are also some light puzzles, which will require you to gather clues and push switches, offering little in the way of challenge, as well as some other fun surprises that you'll find by completing some of the optional side quests on offer.

With all of this in mind, let's break down what works and doesn't work in the form of a feedback sandwich because I am conflict-averse, obviously. Replaced has the "cinematic" portion of "cinematic platformer" down to a science. This game is so beautifully crafted, with scenes like its stunning introduction. I often found myself mesmerized by the visuals, almost forgetting that I was playing a video game. The way in which this development team was able to create depth in a pixel style is incredibly impressive, layering background and foreground items with beams of light highlighting dust particles and shadows darkening the floor beneath us. While you're never going to get a whole lot of details in the faces of our protagonist or the many NPCs that make up this world, the environments themselves are so detailed that it makes the whole thing feel very alive.

Combat also feels fresh and fluid, with a very specific rhythm to it that, once you've mastered it, becomes second nature. Enemy types do become repetitive over time, mostly because the game seemingly stops adding variety to the enemies about three-quarters of the way through your journey, at which point it feels like you've seen at least most of what this game has to show you as far as novelty is concerned.

Similarly, platforming does have a distinct rhythm to it that is not going to feel as fast and fluid as diehard mechanics snobs might hope, though if you have played other cinematic platformers of the past, you may have your expectations set to the right frequency. You'll need to be very precise with your timing to pull off certain death-defying platforming stunts. Fear not, however, as frequent checkpoints mean you'll rarely need to backtrack far upon failure. This same type of precision and rhythm translates directly to the combat as well, so it feels like this is going to be one of those games that either clicks with you or it doesn't. Mechanically, this game doesn't feel consistently responsive, perhaps by design, but frustrating in spots nonetheless.

I do enjoy the sonic offerings of REPLACED, with a synth-heavy, atmospheric soundscape that feels tonally appropriate for the time and place, though I do wish it was surround-sound compatible on the PC, as I feel like it would have taken my experience to the next level. As it is, it felt like a bit of a missed opportunity as there are so many great sound effects in the mix. There's no voice acting whatsoever, which isn't necessarily a bad thing; however, a few standout vocal tracks are included, which I greatly enjoyed.

We ran into various bugs while playing, which the development team was actively working on, so I do expect that many of these issues will be ironed out at or soon after release, but for me, one of them flat out broke the game, at least temporarily. The option to select chapters rather than only reload from the most recent checkpoint could be very helpful for situations such as these. This did admittedly sour my overall experience, so I'll hope the same doesn't happen to you.

I did use this opportunity to test the performance on Steam Deck, however, so there's that. With the framerate uncapped, you'll sometimes be able to achieve 60 FPS in more sparse segments, but there were some pretty severe random dips, and it definitely felt unsteady during action-heavy sequences, which is going to make the platforming and combat all that much more difficult. It still looks pretty but ultimately won't be the best way to experience the game. Outside of that game-breaking bug on PC, there were a few other technical oddities, making it pretty obvious that REPLACED didn't quite get that last layer of polish applied in a timely manner. Overall, I feel very strong positive about the original story and breathtaking visuals, and I actually got on really well with the platforming and combat styles for all of their quirks. REPLACED is well worth your time, earning itself the Silver Genie Lamp of Approval.

GREAT