As soon as I heard thatSpinewas going to be a Summer Game Fest, I had to play it. I’m drawn to action adventure games, especially ones that focus on style with cinematic homages to boot. Although it still doesn’t have a release date, a game with the tagline of “this is gun fu” will be on a lot of people’s radar by the time it actually comes out.
I also spoke to several members of the art team over at Nekki, all of whom are big fans of action films. As we rattled off a ton of classic movies, it was clear which ones were chosen to be represented in the game. But the more I playedSpine, the more I realized thatthe team was making something wholly unique. Instead of just using direct references, Nekki managed to craft something distinct that stands on its own.
Spine Wears Its Cinematic References Proudly
John Wick, Equilibrium, And John Woo Are All Paid Homage To
If you’ve never played a free-form combat game before (thinkAssassin’s CreedorBatman: Arkham),the gist is that you’re constantly surrounded by groups of enemies, and you’ll have to choose how to approach each combat situation. Do you charge the goons with guns and take them out first? Or do you dodge them as you whittle down the melee pack, and use your ranged weaponry to take them down? All the while, on-screen prompts will telegraph attacks, letting you dodge or directly counter them: completely governed by your reaction time.
It’s a good blueprint to be sure, but Nekki executes on that concept better than many other modern action games. Although there is still work to be done, the game’s heroine Redline is very stylish, utilizing her graffiti artist background and her titular spine (which is like a combat-enhancing implant) to take out the droves of enemies the game throws at you. You have an area-of-effect spray can blast to get some breathing room, as well as a trusty pistol, andwhatever other weapons you can find lying around or steal from enemies.
It took me around 30 seconds to fully buy into whatSpinewas all about. Within moments, I was watching Redline stylishly dodge and initiate takedowns, which is a high priority for Nekki as they continue to develop the game and come up with cooler ways to eliminate foes. The enemy AI didn’t let up either, as they were continuously attempting to pummel Redline or get off potshots, which created a constant sense of tension. Although it wasn’t featured heavily in the demo, there’s also a progression system that will open up the combat system even further.
At one point,the camera shifted to a top-down isometric view,which reminded me of the famous firefight fromJohn Wick 4. The team was happy to see that Summer Game Fest players were in tune with these sorts of references, and brought up another sequence that is reminiscent of the hallway brawl fromOldboy. Nekki notes that it’s important to keep players on their toes and change up and how players perceive different combat situations, in a bid to keep things fresh.
Based On How Stylish It Is, I Can See Replaying It
There’s A Lot Of Combat Variety
One core focus of the Summer Game FestSpinedemo was a featured boss fight against a character named Edda Kopp. Spiders were her main theme, and mechanical spider drones (kind of like evil versions of the ones Peter Parker uses) dotted the entire landscape during the boss fight. Edda was also enhanced by a spine, which added a supernatural element to the confrontation, as she was able to phase in and out at times while taking advantage of darkness.All the while, the spider drones are dropping from the arena constantly, keeping you on your toes while you learn her patterns.
My skirmish with Edda was the main reason why I wanted to play through theSpinedemo several times. It was fun learning her patterns, and trying to figure out the best approach: whether it was close-quarters combat or ranged attacks. Both were viable, but I also had the chance to learn her attack timings,and it was just plain fun to dodge the spider drones. If even just a few ofSpine’s boss battles are as fun as this, the game should resonate with action fans.
The Summer Game Fest demo forSpinewas relatively short, but I liked it enough to play through it twice, and picked up on new tactics the second time around. If it succeeds at maintaining this level of energy throughout the entire game, it’s certain to be something that I’ll want to replay on higher difficulties just to see how things play out.
Spineis now due out in 2026, and will be released on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Switch 2.
