Very few weapons in all of gaming are more versatile than the grappling hook. Guns are nice for putting holes in things, sure, but if it wasn’t for decades of of gaming creativity that’s all they’d be good for. A grappling hook, on the other hand, doubles as a limited-range weapon and a mobility aid. Latch on to a receptive surface and you may swing across the level, and with a little careful use of momentum that swing practically turns into flying. The protagonist of Sanabi has a giant metal chain-arm and the skills to use it to its full potential, but he’s long retired and living with his daughter so there’s not a lot of need to practice with it. Life is good, almost cloyingly idyllic until one day it isn’t any more, and then it’s time to re-hone the old skills for one final mission.
Whatever Sanabi may be isn’t explained in the play-test that released today, but it’s found in a giant city that once had three hundred million people in it until they all mysteriously vanished. Nameless Hero sets off into the city with very little in the way of a plan until he meets Mari, a hacker who’d gone in with an exploratory group and is now the only one left. Mari has a semi-decent grasp on the situation while Mr. Grapple-Arm provides the muscle, and if the two can work together they might figure out what actually happened here.
The Sanabi playtest went live today, containing all of chapter 1 and a story-free section of chapter 2. you’re able to play just by clicking the Request Access buttonover on Steam, and it’s a fair chunk of gaming. Sanabi is an action-platformer that’s as heavy on the narrative as it is gameplay, a little slow and easy at first but developing into a good challenge as it goes. The protagonist has a versatile set of moves and feels incredibly powerful, but you’ll need a good handle on his abilities to clear a section unharmed. His main power is to use the grapple-arm to latch on to most walls and enemies, and if a wall can be grappled it’s also climbable. Taking out enemies requires not just grappling but zipping to them, at which point you can either hold the grapple button down to stay latched on or use a quick tap to spring off them. Holding the grapple can be necessary with the flying enemies, using them as temporary transportation when the walls are electrified and the next grapple-point is out of reach, while springing off is useful to avoid landing on hazardous floors or to get the needed distance to the next grappling section. It’s a simple but very flexible set of moves, and the level design in just the first chapter makes good use of the basics before chapter two starts building on things with new devices.
As a playtest rather than actual demo, though, Sanabi still has its rough edges. The boss difficulty is being tuned, for example, and the much-needed controller support isn’t in yet. I’m also fairly sure the area I stopped playing in hit a bug, because the chapter 2 series of rooms would have been a good challenge if it hadn’t restarted me with one health after each death unlike every other area in the game. Even so, Sanabi is feeling good so far, so if you’re looking to check out a promising 2D action adventureits playtestis worth an evening or two’s gaming for the two weeks it’s available.
