If you know me, I love a good action game. There's a very specific moment in any action game where I decide if I'm going to lock in or not.

I got to experience that moment with Asbak at IGDX. The game, developed by Team Fossil and Vifth Floor combines some of my favorite influences- from ATLUS-style menus to a very Under-Night style transition.

Asbak Gameplay

Yet, it wasn't the dual characters that got me hooked on its combat. It was actually during the tutorial, where the game explains a very important fact: you have a launcher.

You see, that's the major sign of a good action game. Having a dedicated launcher is the game's explicit blessing: do air combos, my child. Don't forget to tag in your alternate character too to extend said combo.

Air combos admittedly are a little rudimentary. Launch, then mash melee to do a series of rapid slashes. But even that's such a refreshing change of pace to see a game wholesale embrace this stuff. I lowkey hope there's more down the line in the game: any kind of jump cancel will fill me with nothing but bliss.

Everything feels so smooth the way you move around and juggle enemies. My biggest gripe was with the second character: the game isn't entirely clear how you should be using her. As much as I love range characters they're a bit harder to implement in an action game sense. Heck, it took DMC 2 before character action games got a rough idea of how to have fun with cool gun combat.

Still, combine that with the game's very Southeast Asian monsters and that same Indonesia-but-anime vibe, and Asbak has my attention. There's a demo available now too, so be sure to get your hands on it and experience the joy of combos for yourself.