Blades of time switch: Blades of Time for Switch Reviews

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Blades of Time: Launch Trailer

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Critic Reviews for Blades of Time

Nintendo Life

Dom Reseigh-Lincoln

4 / 10

As hard as it tries, Blades of Time rarely comes close to emulating the success of any of its obvious muses.

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Just Push Start

Grant E. Gaines

1.3 / 5.0

Blades of Time feels less like a loving remaster that we can now take on the go and more like a last chance at redemption. With frustrating elements, dated idea and less depth than a current Dynasty Warrior title, it’s hard to understand who this remaster is for.

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GameSpace

Kris Brooks

5 / 10.0

The game was moderately enjoyable though it felt very much like every other title that Blades of Time obviously gained inspiration from. The gameplay was familiar but a bit lackluster as it got old fast. The decision to split ranged and melee left the game a bit disconnected, dare I say disengaging. The improvement’s that where made still fall under the shadows of itself.

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SECTOR.

sk

Matúš Štrba

3.5 / 10.0

Blades of Time definitely didn’t pass the test of time. The game is still broken and cannor be saved by any of its interesting ideas.

Review in Slovak | Read full review

Cubed3

Albert Lichi

2 / 10

‘Unenjoyable’ is a very mild way to describe Blades of Time. This turkey is nigh unplayable depending on a player’s tolerance for trashy, glitchy gameplay. With so many elements that are broken, nobody should be playing this, which is too bad because there are some aspects at hand that could have made it interesting. There is a surprising amount of unlockable content that nobody will ever bother to get, because who in their right mind would ever wish to torture themselves? Blades of Time is the skid-row of 3D action games.

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Digitally Downloaded

Matt Sainsbury

Time hasn’t been good to Blades of Time, and and other than for the morbidly curious, I can’t see anyone being masochistic enough to derive any value out of it.

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NintendoWorldReport

Zachary Miller

5 / 10.0

Blades of Time is bad, and you should not play it.

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Rapid Reviews UK

Shaun Hughes

The Gaijin Distribution published title, Blades of Time, is the latest in a long line of ports from the last generation of home consoles to land on the Nintendo Switch. Whilst many have been obvious choices, and some a little less so, Blades of Time was the first that made me truly question why. This hack-and-slash, action-adventure title from 2012 is neither steeped in nostalgia nor back by popular demand. The media opinions were somewhat of a mixed bag, and it seemed that Blades of Time would be left to rest alongside the Xbox 360 and PS3.

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View All Critic Reviews (11)

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Blades of Time Review — Review

Blades of Time is a 2012 character action game from Gaijin Entertainment, a studio whose bread and butter seems to be military vehicle combat simulators. Why it’s been resurrected in 2019 for the Switch is confusing, especially since it runs so poorly and feels downright prehistoric in an era where character action games have come so far. Yes, it tries to do something different. No, that different thing isn’t implemented particularly well. Is Blades of Time is a Trojan Horse for a mobile-style multiplayer mode that apparently includes in-game purchases? Yes.

In Story mode, you control Ayumi, a bikini warrior who’s found her way to Dragonland in search of treasure primarily, but also her partner, Zero, who she brings up at every opportunity. It’s not clear how she and Zero arrived in Dragonland or why they were separated in the first place. In no time, Ayumi meets a spirit who lives in stone altars named (checks notes) “Altar,” as well as a spirit who looks like a ghostly dragon lady named (checks notes) “Spirit of the Dragon.” I would love to know what names the developers rejected in coming up with these.

Ayumi kills things with her twin swords for the most part, whipping together basic combos and building a “rage” meter that allows her to unleash magic attacks. Every time she comes across a new Alter statue, Ayumi can select a couple new magic attacks or buffs, which at least keeps combat fresh. She can dash away from danger with ZR, although it covers more ground than it probably needs to. There is no block or counter option, however, which is disappointing. Jumping is mapped to the X button, which is never intuitive, while magic is mapped to the B button. You cannot swap these inputs.

Where Blades of Time attempts to differentiate itself from other character action games is in its staggeringly poor performance. Wait, no, I’ve skipped ahead. I mean it’s time rewind feature. In the tradition of such genre classics as Catrap and Blinx: the Time Sweeper, Ayumi can rewind time for several seconds, which creates a ghostly red doppelganger. This doppelganger then duplicates her actions from the last several seconds. You can do this multiple times so that multiple replicas are parading around. The game encourages you to use this ability in switch and door puzzles (of course) but also in combat for certain enemy types or boss encounters; it is awkward and forces you to precisely choreograph your movement and attacks.

Can we talk about the performance issues now? Great. Virtually every time I played, I’d get an error message at some point that would close the game and send me back to the Switch menu. This usually happened in large areas with lots of moving parts and particle effects which occur with some regularity. I have yet to encounter a game-breaking save bug, but I know it’s out there. The framerate isn’t good to begin with, but the game really starts to chug when there’s a lot going on. Even using the time rewind comes with a few tense seconds of lag. It’s not uncommon to see some enemies get stuck on level geometry. Every time Ayumi has to ascend a vertical shaft via floating plants called “corals,” the camera has a seizure.

The camera is actually a persistent foe throughout the game and must be constantly struggled against.

Blades of Time has an uncommonly high number of cutscenes, all in-engine, which are prone to audio synching issues. The cutscenes also really show off the character models, which is not necessarily a good thing. It turns out that faces, especially, in the PS3/360 era have not aged gracefully. Ayumi talks a lot, both to other characters and, more concerningly, herself during gameplay. My working theory is that Gaijin Games just got the game running on Switch hardware, said “good enough, guys” and then focused on the multiplayer mode.

The multiplayer mode is called “Outbreak,” and it’s essentially a tower defense game. Your goal is to lead your troops toward enemy towers and then a spawn tree, which is where troops spawn. I’ve found that it’s rarely a good idea to attack the towers directly, as they send out energy pulses that quickly kill you. Instead, your goal is to help your troops kill enemy troops so that they can move forward, and then they’ll destroy the towers for you. You’ll be facing off against your enemies’ human-controlled captain, who may or may not focus on PvP. After you match ends, you’re given rewards to spend on equipment and character skins.

Now here’s where the mobile bullshit comes in. There’s a daily bonus for checking in. You need to reach a certain level to access most of the buyable weapons and accessories. You can upgrade or “reforge” previously-held weapons and accessories, but it’s really not explained well. Outbreak’s premium currency is “Gems,” which are used to buy new character skins and new characters. I could not tell you how gems are acquired. I think you earn an insultingly low number of them for winning matches. Given that Blades of Times’ eShop webpage warns of “In-game purchases,” I have to assume that you’ll eventually be able to spend money to buy Gems. Merely doing stuff like shooting so many enemies, opening so many treasure chests, or killing so many opponents grants Achievements, which all have small rewards like gold or potions.

However, the Outbreak store is currently riddled with error messages. There also doesn’t appear to be a way to equip consumables. If there is, there isn’t a tutorial telling me how. I don’t understand how the forge works. Keys are another potential money-grubber. You use keys to open treasure chests that spawn during matches, but each chest requires three keys to unlock, which seems high.
Just like in Story mode, the camera is trying at every opportunity to get you killed. Outbreak is sort of a fun mode, but it does get old quickly, and everything surrounding it is unexplained or prone to error messages, and I can see it becoming kind of gross in a free-to-play way.

Blades of Time is bad, and you should not play it.

How to use a hair clipper?

To learn such a skill as a haircut with a clipper is actually quite simple. Let’s figure out what technical characteristics to look for when buying a new tool, and understand how to handle it correctly. Having mastered these simple rules, you no longer want to waste time traveling to salons in search of the perfect master.

How to choose a device for home use
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• Specialization — for a regular haircut, almost any clipper is suitable, but for trimming a beard with a mustache or removing hair in the nose, you need a trimmer with a narrower blade and special attachments.
• Power type — the device can operate directly from the mains or battery, or both options. If you have to cut not only at home, it is better that there are different connection options.
• Power — if you have thick or coarse hair, a device with above average power will cope with them faster.
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• Assortment of attachments included — the more haircuts you plan to do, the more attachments should be included.

  They are usually from one to nine pieces, with a range of hair lengths from half a millimeter to 3 centimeters. For different nozzles, the “step” of adjusting the length is different, then choose solely according to your preferences.

• Blade quality — standard blades are made of stainless steel, they are quite reliable and durable. If you’re planning on using your clipper as an in-house trimmer, consider titanium-ceramic-coated blades, as well as self-sharpening options that don’t require replacement.
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• Working time — standard 45 minutes is enough for one to two people to treat the hair / beard. If there are several people, the option of uninterrupted operation up to 3 hours will help out. It is also important to take into account the charging speed here: some models charge a couple of hours, others need a third of a day.
• Additional features: waterproof for use in the shower, the presence of an adapter for networks with different voltages, a display for a clear indication of the remaining charge.

The Polaris clippers catalog has models with all the mentioned characteristics and other interesting options.

How to use a clipper

Tool preparation

To ensure that the hairs do not “chew” during cutting, the lines are smooth, and the length is uniform, adjust the blades before starting work. Their correct position is as follows: the hair length adjustment lever is at a minimum, while the upper edge recedes from the lower one by 0.5–1 mm. To achieve the ideal position, you can slightly loosen the screws and then tighten the blades to the desired level.
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Before first use, be sure to oil the blades, let them idle for about half a minute, and then make sure that there is no excess left for the cut hairs to stick to. Remove excess grease with a dry cloth. After a test run, turn off the machine, select the desired nozzle, fasten it until it clicks, holding the appliance with the blades up.

How to use the clipper correctly? To adjust the length, there is a switch on the body that can be moved in a certain range, for example, 4-7-10-13-16 mm. Also, in some models, you can set the length of the haircut without attachments at all, only with the help of a lever. It protrudes from the side of the body at the level of the thumb, so that it is convenient to move to several levels in one movement.
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For example, if you move the lever to its highest position, there will be a minimum length of 0.8 mm while cutting, but as you move it clockwise, this can be increased to 3 mm.

Head treatment

Before cutting, be sure to wash your hair, dry it well, comb your hair. This is important so that the blades do not become dull during operation, and the nozzles are not clogged with hair knots. Very long strands are best cut with scissors in advance.
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Before using the hair clipper, visually (or with the help of hairdressing tucks) divide the head into main zones: occipital, temporal, parietal. Of course, if you want to evenly trim the length over the entire head, this can be omitted. More «model» haircuts require zoning and sequential processing of each zone with its own nozzle. Recommendations for choosing one or another nozzle are in the instructions for the machine.

• Neck. Point the machine with the cutting edges up, first using the largest nozzle in the kit. Start moving from bottom to top towards the top of the head with slow “steps” against the growth of hairs so that they rise better. Do not try to shoot a lot at once, it is better to do it in several passes, especially if you do not have enough practice. At the end, you can take the smallest nozzle to trim the back of the head to the desired length.
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• Crown. After passing through a large nozzle, if you need to shorten your hair, take a smaller nozzle. If you want to leave a significant length, lift the hair with a flat comb, trimming the tips right over the teeth.
• Whiskey. You will need a nozzle with the shortest possible length or just adjustment with a lever. Make the transition from temples to sideburns smooth, without sharp boundaries. You can complete the haircut with scissors if there are separate protruding «antennas» somewhere.
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In the process, clean the blades from time to time so that they do not jam or tear your hair. It is not even necessary to remove them, just turn the length adjustment lever several times to the extreme positions. If there is no lever, clean the blade unit by hand.

Useful tips for caring for your appliance

Before cleaning the device, be sure to unplug it from the mains.

• Rinse all used tips under running water.
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• Remove the blades, go over the blade block and body with the cleaning brush supplied with the machine.
• Treat the knives with special oil so that they do not wear out longer, do not overheat, and run smoothly. Perform this treatment before the first use, and then after every few sessions.
• Sharpen the blades if you feel that using the hair clipper as before is not working — it tears the hairs, scratches the skin.
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• Store the device in a protective case to keep it free of dust.
• If you do not use the appliance for a long time, recharge its battery at least once every six months.

Instruction. TAKUMI 900 ED Hair Clipper

Precautions

When using the appliance, follow basic instructions, including the following:

Read all instructions before using the clipper.

Danger — to avoid the risk of electric shock:

1. Do not touch the appliance if it has been dropped into water. Unplug immediately.
2. Do not use while shampooing.
3. Do not place the appliance near a sink. Do not place in water or other liquid.
4. Always unplug the appliance after use.
5. Turn the instrument off before cleaning, assembling or disassembling parts.

Warning — To reduce the risk of fire, fire, electric shock, or personal injury:

1. Do not leave the appliance turned on unattended.

2. Do not leave the appliance unsupervised when children are nearby.

3. Use the device only in accordance with the instructions described. Do not use attachments not recommended by Thrive

4. Never use the appliance if it has a damaged cord or plug, if it does not work properly, if it has been damaged or dropped into water. In this case, return the device to the store for inspection and repair. nine0003

5. Keep cord away from hot surfaces.

6. Do not use the appliance on soft surfaces such as a bed or sofa. Keep the appliance free of lint, hair, fur, etc.

7. Do not insert any objects into the device.

8. Do not use the device outdoors if aerosol products have been used.

9. Do not use the appliance with a damaged comb or blade to avoid injury to the head.

10. To turn off the instrument, press OFF, then remove the plug from the socket. nine0003

11. During use, do not leave the appliance where it can be damaged by children.

12. Do not wrap the cord around the appliance during storage. Further pressure on the cord may damage the insulating material and result in shock.

13. Avoid direct contact with blades.

14. Avoid tangling the cord. If the cord becomes tangled, turn off the appliance and untangle the cord.

The clipper has been designed for a variety of jobs. The 35 watt motor allows you to cut for a long time. The device weighs only 450 grams. Blades are easy to replace and clean. nine0003

Inserting the blades

With the machine switched off, fit the blade unit onto the metal tongue of the machine. Then turn on the machine and with a little effort snap the knife block into place.

Blade replacement

Disconnect the cord and turn off the machine by setting the switch to the Off position.

Detach the blade as shown.

Dirt and Hair Removal

Normally dirt and hair will get between the blade and the comb, stop cutting and remove the dirt. Pull out the blade. Move the top blade, which is under the metal clip (see picture 6). Remove dirt and hair. Then put the blade back in place. nine0003

Note: it is not necessary to loosen the bolts on the blade pressure spring.

Sharpening blades

The replacement blade must be sharp. But after prolonged use, the blade loses its original appearance and needs to be sharpened. You can keep spare blades on hand or contact your nearest service center.

Lubricating the machine

It is not necessary to lubricate the machine itself — this can damage the machine.