LIONPLEX's first game looks like a fantastic pickup for anyone who enjoys a wide variety of action-platformers. Neon Krieger Yamato gives you eight playable characters to play as through a wide variety of genres. The genre-blending on display is impressive, and uses platformers alongside combat-centric puzzles to bring back touches of the past with its pixel art and also using more detailed art than one would normally see in the early '90s.

The game's design isn't quite like anything else as a result of the robust character roster, but the combo-centric nature of the combat is more akin to a fighting game or a belt-scrolling brawler than anything else. The short-range attacks like swords evoke a bit of Strider, while the detail level in the art is at around Neo-Geo level at various points. The game's animation looks incredibly smooth for enemy movement, while player movement is a bit more stunted - which is more good than bad for an action game. You want to be able to easily-time attacks, and having fewer frames of animation allows you to time attacks better.

Having eight different characters is an interesting choice, and one that makes me wonder about just how intricate the level designs will be. Normally, when a game has a cast this large, stage design siffers a bit because it has to craft levels for too many kinds of characters. As a result, levels are less interesting to go through and you wind up with a more repetitious experience. What's been shown in video form is too brief to really tell one way or another, but it's something worth keeping an eye on as the game's release date draws closer. There does appear to be a fair amount of variety in the roster's gameplay style though – which is a great sign.

From what's been shown already, you have short-range swords, long-range swords, a variety of guns including a sniper rifle, and a character with more brute strength than raw accuracy. This means that if you're in the mood for a little Strider, go for a sword while someone in the mood for something more like Mega Man may want to go with a blaster-style weapon. Having variety in a game like this is great, and the cyberpunk look to the game world helps it stand out. The giant bosses won't hurt it either – and show off the best-looking animation in the game so far.

The game's soundtrack seems to lean heavy on a harder rock sound, which usually works nicely for action-platformers. It gets the blood pumping and makes you want to wreck enemies quickly, which can heighten your reflexes and allow you to do a bit better. It puts you in the zone a bit faster and winds up getting your brain fired up too. It's a shame Neon Krieger Yamato doesn't have a release date yet, but it looks like a promising game for not only Linux gamers, but also Windows users as well.