Review: Yohane the Parhelion May Pleasantly Surprise Metroidvania Fans

As a massive fan of Love Live, imagine my surprise when a 2D action game featuring the series’ beloved chuunibyo Yohane Tsushima from Aqours called Yohane the Parhelion -Blaze in the Deepblue- was announced. Even more baffling was the fact that it was going to be made by Inti Creates, the creative minds behind the Gunvolt series of games. While this is my first time playing an Inti Creates game, I’m delighted to say that I enjoyed my time with it. I also suspect that those who love Metroidvanias and don’t know a thing about Love Live, Yohane the Parhelion -Blaze in the Deepblue- will find it delivers a gameplay experience that can be enjoyed regardless of whether you’re an idol or Metroidvania fan.

The explanation as to how the high-school-girl-turned-butt-kicking-fortune-teller Yohane and her friends ended up in this dungeon isn’t outright explained at the very beginning. It’s the core mystery of this game. What you do know is that the other members of Aqours have been kidnapped, and it’s your job to help Yohane find them with her trusty canine friend Lailaps. After each comically large boss is killed, you’ll gain one more friend to aid you in your quest to save all of them.

The story takes a pretty massive backseat here, to be honest. The gameplay is where it’s at. You’re thrown into the action as soon as you arrive. Yohane certainly wastes no time defeating enemies and traversing each area to round up her friends. If you’re already into Love Live, this headstrong aspect of her character shouldn’t come as a surprise to you. She should sound familiar too. Aika Kobayashi’s voice performance as Yohane is, once again, outstanding. In fact, all of the voice actors did a fantastic job selling their character’s individuality, charisma, and humor in this fully voiced adventure.

I would say that if you’re already familiar with this crew of characters, you will get more out of small references, such as Ruby’s cotton candy shield or Hanamaru’s “Mirai Zura” laptop explosion. However, if those words mean nothing to you, you’ll likely still have a fun learning about each girl’s abilities and how they influence the game. For those who love Love Live, there’s enough here that it’ll be a nostalgic, feel-good experience for you as you see each character’s interactions with Yohane. As a fan, I thought that there was a little left to be desired, however I did appreciate hearing some Aqours music.

Still, if you really don’t care about or have never watched Love Live, I still wholeheartedly believe that you can still enjoy the game. It is a solid Metroidvania first and foremost. Each character interaction is tied to a gameplay element, like map progression and character upgrades, so there isn’t a lot of fluff that will distract you. Plus, these story segments are rare in general and rarely interrupt your exploration.

There are nine different characters to switch between, with each offering a different ability that can help you progress deeper into the dungeon and gain the upper hand in battle. These characters include the other eight members of Aqours and Lailaps. In my experience, I felt that each character had time to shine. Yes, I used characters like Dia, Riko, and Hanamaru more often, as they are particularly strong against enemies, but I can’t think of a single character that was shelved. Plus, the pixel animations of the girls using their newfound powers looked very cute and charming. I especially liked the added touch of Hanamaru’s dizziness when she spin-dashes her way into a wall, Sonic the Hedgehog-style.

Yohane can learn a bunch of new abilities for herself, and each character gets their own extra scenes and treasure to hunt for to unlock their unique upgrade. Double-jumping and climbing walls as Yohane is especially helpful when it comes to fully exploring the dungeon. It was extremely satisfying to defeat bosses, unlock more girls, and then backtrack to use their help to enter areas that were previously blocked off before.

If you love using a variety of weapons and armor, you’re in luck. In addition to upgrading characters, there is a plethora of weapons to cast (craft) for Yohane. I had a blast testing out new ones whenever I had the chance.

Which was helpful, as I found there were times when this game was a bit of a challenge. There is no difficulty slider, after all. However, with some retrying, analyzing attack patterns, and perhaps a little grinding to stock up on buffs and healing items, I found it manageable. Just know that I opened nearly all of the hidden chests in the dungeon and still had to grind for money to be able to clear the final boss. This was even after I feel I created the best build for Yohane I possibly could by unlocking each equipment slot and giving her the best items. The final boss will test your knowledge of the girls’ abilities, since they will all need to be used properly to defeat it. That being said, I still felt that the difficulty of the entire game ramped up in a way that wasn’t surprising and felt natural.

Yohane the Parhelion -Blaze in the Deepblue- is a solid Metroidvania experience full of pleasant surprises that will delight seasoned veterans of both the genre and Love Live fans. With plenty to explore and discover, this game is well worth your time and dollar.

Yohane the Parhelion -Blaze in the Deepblue- is available on the PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PCs via Steam.