Trepang2: Bladekisser Review

Despite being on polar opposites of the FPS genre spectrum, Ready or Not and Trepang2 share a stupid amount of similarities. They’re both spiritual successors to games from the 2000s, both have best-in-class graphics and animations, both are absolutely amazing, both came out in the second half of 2023, and, most importantly to this review, both had a DLC release recently. Both of their DLCs are also relatively small, but also relatively cheap, and after all is said and done, serve as little more than an excuse for you to reinstall their respective base games. But that doesn’t mean they both aren’t great, or that you shouldn’t pick them up provided you enjoyed Ready or Not or Trepang2 respectively.

Just to be clear, this isn’t a double review or anything like that, although it is hard for me to come up with words to describe Trepang2: Bladekisser that don’t also apply to Ready or Not: Home Invasion. Because, again, even though the latter adds three new levels to one of the most slow-paced and methodical first-person shooters in existence while the latter adds two new levels to one of the fastest-paced and chaotic first-person shooters in existence, they’re both effectively the same thing. That thing is more immensely enjoyable shooting in beautifully designed environments that have little to do with the narratives of their base games, plus three new weapons and some other minor content.

In Bladekisser, those missions come in the form of two that are more-or-less detached from the spy thriller-esque story of Trepang 2, plus nine maps to play in its horde mode and a sword, revolver and machine gun for your armoury. The missions and additions to its arena mode are somehow the least noteworthy out of everything in the expansion, because although they’re well-designed and fun to play through, they also aren’t any better or worse than the dozen-odd quests in base Trepang 2. That isn’t a bad thing by any means, as the core missions in the game are absolutely fantastic, and are a perfect blend of high-octane gunfights and stealth sequences that allow you to feel like the ultimate badass, all of which can also be said for Bladekisser’s missions.

Two of the three new weapons the expansion adds also aren’t very special, either. The assault rifle is a slower firing version of the assault rifle in the base game that deals more damage and has a bigger magazine, and the revolver is a slower firing but higher damage-dealing version of Trepang2’s pistol. Both guns are fun to use, are well balanced, and have spectacular animations, but also don’t change the title’s gameplay significantly for better or worse. That can’t be said about the sword Bladekisser adds, though, because, well, it’s a sword.

The katana is a one-hit kill melee weapon that absolutely changes the way you play the game. You, somewhat obviously, need to be close to your enemies to hit them with it, but because of how frenetic Trepang2’s movement systems are, that’s not exactly hard. It’s different, though, and it forces you to play the game in a way you probably didn’t before. Like all of the game’s weapons, it’s stupidly satisfying to use, and it alone makes the DLC worth purchasing as long as you like the idea of playing as a cyberpunk samurai.

Although, truth be told, you should pick up the DLC even if you don’t, because it’s cheaper than a box of buckshot shells. Even though it doesn’t add all that much content, and you can experience it all in the time it took you to read this review then look at its Steam page, what content it does have is just as good as base Trepang2, and that’s saying more than just something. Trepang2 is one of the most enjoyable FPS games on the market, and its second DLC simply offers more of that base game, plus a katana. And what more do you need in life besides that?

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