Genokids is an upcoming hack-and-slash spectacle fighter published and developed by Nukefist. The game just got a short demo to go along with its Kickstarter page, so we checked it out.

The game has actually been in development for a while now, with some of the development footage dating back to 2016.

Genokids plays like a hybrid of Kingdom Hearts and Devil May Cry, prioritizing stylish combos and rewarding players for mechanical execution. The demo that recently came out is a bit short, but I am thoroughly amazed by Genokids‘ impeccable style and fast-paced gameplay.

We aren’t given much in terms of plot aside from the fact that two of the four playable characters want to cross a huge gap; Red wants to jump it, while Blue wants to fly over it. The opening cinematic is very reminiscent of independent anime, and while it isn’t impressive on a technical level, it is quite charming.

Blue is extremely mobile and wields a guitar sword, while Red is slightly slower but hits very hard with his bongo fist weapons.

The game really gets going once you start making use of the character switch mechanic, which opens up endless possibilities for combo chaining.

I cannot overstate how fantastic the combat is feeling in this demo; from the super moves like Blue’s own judgment cut to juggling enemies with Red and doing air combos, everything feels fantastic, smooth, and fast-paced. Here’s some of my gameplay:

The references to titles like Devil May Cry are very easy to spot; Blue takes a lot from Vergil, and Red plays like an amalgamation of Dante’s fist weapons over the years.

Despite their inspirations from big titles in the genre, the characters still manage to feel unique, putting their own twist on combat.

The demo gives us roughly 15-20 minutes of gameplay, ending with a boss fight against the Valkyrie, a winged robot who shoots lasers and spins around a lot.

This boss is a great showcase of everything that can be done in Genokids; it’s aggressive and moves around a lot, but it also has very generous gaps in its patterns.

If you want to know more about Genokids:

Inspired by games like Kingdom Hearts or Devil May Cry, Genokids is a game about flashy, over-the-top action where player expression is highly encouraged. Arm yourself with the power of motivation and show the impossible who’s boss!

The answer to everything, violence. These are the most fundamental interactions in the game, these include a ground combo, and air combo, a launcher and a grounpound.  Successfully hitting an enemy will quickly fill your Flow meter.

Genokids’s main mechanic is the ability to seamlessly swap between all four characters at any time in the middle of a fight. No cooldowns, no resource management, just pure chaotic fun.

Enemy design on Genokids isn’t amazing so far; most enemies are weird and colorful small creatures; the floating mages and jester bombs seem to have had more thought put into their design, but the droplet enemies are a bit too basic.

On the other hand, a lot of effort has been put into designing the playable characters. Blue and Red are both quite stylish and move in very satisfying ways. Their voice acting is also done really well and adds a lot to both of their personalities.

We only get to play with two out of the four band members on this demo, but what’s been seen so far is really exciting. Genokids is set to release at some point in 2025, and I can’t begin to imagine how much more impressive the game will become with two extra years of development.

The character action genre has stood still for too long; Devil May Cry‘s resurgence brought quite a few indie gems alongside it, but the genre is still lacking in releases. Assault Spy and Hi-Fi Rush are the only games that come to mind recently.

Anyone remotely interested in the character action genre has to give this demo a shot. Genokids is shaping up to be a fantastic entry to the genre, and it couldn’t get here sooner. The game is on its way to being another Kickstarter success story, with its funding reaching its goal in less than 24 hours after the page went up.

Players interested in Genokids can still throw some money at the already-funded Kickstarter campaign for some extra bonuses. The Kickstarter closes on May 10th, 2023, so anyone looking for exclusive bonuses has to move fast.

Genokids is set to release at some point in 2025 for Microsoft Windows (through Steam).