Violet Wisteria
Violet Wisteria sees the return of Japanese style 80s and 90s fantasy platformers as you take control of Wisteria Asagiri to save not only Earth but the Higher Realm and Under-Realms as well. Master the 3 color attack system to overcome a myriad of obstacles and enemies. Travel across multiple dimensions to thwart the wizard Maskandes’ sinister plot. With presentation inspired by heroine platformers like Valis and Alisia Dragoon, and gameplay influenced by classics like Silhouette Mirage and Ikaruga, only the most determined will be able to see the heart wrenching finale.
Violet Wisteria’s claim to fame is its tri-color attack gimmick, which can be likened to rock-scissors-paper but with colors instead of symbols. Wisteria can execute three different colored sword attacks, and enemies appear at random in palette swaps of the same three colors. Learning to use the correct color attack against the correct color enemy is key to progressing, and stage obstacles will also require using this attack system in a variety of ways. This isn’t a game where you can just start mashing buttons and perform melee combos, it requires precision and quick judgements.
With 8 stages of carefully crafted platforming and intricate boss fights, Violet Wisteria will present just the right challenge for those looking for a fresh take on a tried and true genre. Immerse yourself in the 16 bit aesthetic and remember a time when video games were pure magic.
Game Discussion
Steam User 13
A throwback to games like Valis, Rusty or Psycho Dream and it fits the bill. For enjoyers of obscure, jank yet stylized and charming action platformers from the 90s Violet Wisteria should be played. Game designs great, with creative mechanics and every playthrough is unique. Stages are linear but none of it feels scripted. Enemy weaknesses and attacks are randomized. Progression feels earned, bear in mind its unforgiving. Limited lives and continues, stages that require pinpoint timing. It's a philosphy we don't see often in games these days, even retro inspired ones. Some will criticize it for being dated but preserving these design philosophys give Violet Wisteria a place.
Steam User 6
KaniPro Games was keen not to simply make a slavish recreation of Valis for modern systems; rather, they wanted to draw inspiration from the classic platformers but still provide their own distinctive, unique twist on the formula. And they’ve certainly succeeded in that regard; Violet Wisteria is recognisable as an homage to Valis, but it’s also very much its own distinct thing, and it’s absolutely unashamed of everything it is.
That’s a bold creative statement, and one I very much respect from a passion project like this.
Full review here
Steam User 8
Terribly hard and rewarding. The game is fair, yet still pisses me off.
Music is great.
My thumbs hurt.
10/10
Steam User 5
Awesome 90's inspired game that's similar to the Valis series. It has a strong challenge and good music so I highly recommend it to gamers looking for a retro platformer fix.
Steam User 3
A 90s styled platformer with a unique combat system, for better or worse.
The game is already quite challenging in general, and most enemies can only be defeated by their own color, if you attack with a different one you get repelled backwards. One wrong input can kill you easily because of that. I enjoyed the game but think that the attack system holds it back, rather than improving it.
Steam User 2
First off I highly recommend this game. It's very enjoyable and is a lot of fun.
You play as Wisteria who has to save her people from an evil invading their land. It main hook of the game is it's color attack mechanic where depending on the color of the enemy you need to use different attacks to defeat them. You are also able to use the same color attack against an enemy to rebound off them to vault over holes or to reach higher than your normal jump can reach. It's an interesting mechanic that tries to put ag spin on the familiar platforming and hack n slash gameplay.
This is a loving tribute the the Valis Series of games and that is series I am a big fan of. From the cut-scenes, the Music and the Graphics you can see that inspiration all over this and it's very well done.
Only complaints I have are that you can't reconfigure your controls at all. The game was built for the Xbox controller so you need one of those. I normally play games with a PS5 controller and when I tried playing this game with it the controls were all messed up making it hard to play. I tried my Xbox controller and it worked great!
Also I get that the color attack system was an attempt to make this stand out and lead to different gameplay possibilities but I'm not feeling that at all. I find it more annoying than fun. Maybe it'll eventually click for me. There is a power up that lets you use any attack to defeat enemies and when that is on the game feels great! Without it then it becomes a little more difficult than needed at times. Like i said that's more of a me thing and not a game quality thing.
Again I can't recommend this enough. It's a quality title that has a lot of potential to go far. I hope this sells well and we see a Violet Wisteria 2!!!!
Steam User 2
If you want a challenging early era SNES/Super Famicom style action platformer, this is the game for you. It draws a lot of inspiration from the Valis games, but has its own unique twist. This game isn’t for everyone, but if you’re into this style of game, it is a lot of fun. You can tell that a lot of passion went into making this feel like an authentic experience from that time. Would love if there were scanline and color options to make it look more retro.