Playing as two characters at once is a concept that designers have been iterating on for decades. From the forgotten Namco puzzle gameLibble Rabbleto the modern Platinum Games action-adventureAstral Chain, the concept has seen use in many contexts.Mario Kartveterans likely remember the days ofMario Kart: Double Dash!!on the Nintendo GameCube. Others may be familiar withJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future,Persona 4 Arena, and various tag team fighting games. And of course, there have been plenty of squad-based shooters where players can send orders to their teammates likeStar Wars: Republic Commando.
Having more than one character under the player’s control can add a lot of depth to a game’s systems, so it makes sense that ambitious developers have come back to it time and time again. The latest of these isSoulstice, an action game inspired byDevil May Crythat puts players in control of a sister duo that share one body. Together, they form a being known as a Chimera, an elite fighter sent out to fight incursions of Wraiths. It’s a fun concept, and should provide plenty of depth into the game’s combat and story. Gamers have likely heard the term Chimera before, and it’s rarely a word that gets tossed around for trivial matters.
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What Is A Soulstice Chimera?
A chimera is a very common fantasy creature that originated in Greek mythology. There, it was a monstrous fire-breathing hybrid animal with the front head and legs of a lion, the middle section of a goat, and a snake for its tail. While not quite as iconic as Cerberus or the Lernaean Hydra, this three-headed beast has embedded itself in culture. The term “chimera” has come to describe any creature made up of parts from various other animals, as well as ideas so novel that they look like freakish hybrids to outsiders. Plenty of chimeras have appeared in gaming, including theclassical monster representation found inDragon’s Dogma, and the alien species that is converted into playable Legions from the aforementionedAstral Chain.
SoulsticeChimeras are based on human beings, but still operate as magical hybrids. Powerful monsters known as Wraiths are invading the Holy Kingdom of Keidas from the other side of the Veil. Wraiths can corrupt living humans and even possess their bodies, becoming even more powerful monsters. In response, the Chimeras are deployed, being hybrid warriors born of the ritualistic union of two souls. It seems like the mysterious Order of the Ashen Blade has engineered these super soldiers with the specificpurpose of pushing back the Wraiths, and the nature of their union may make them more difficult to corrupt.
How Chimeras Manifest in Soulstice’s Gameplay
The player takes control of one such Chimera, being made up of the superhumanly strong and resilient Briar and her ethereal sister Lute. Acting as a shade, Lute follows closely behind Briar and provides ranged support and magical auras. She isn’t unlike V’s bird companionGriffon fromDevil May Cry 5in this respect. Briar, meanwhile, focuses on combos and swift movements, often wielding weapons larger than herself. This seems to be a common trait among Chimera, as Sir Donovan, The Shadeless needs nothing more than a massive sword and his Knight training to rank among the Chimera elite. Why Donovan refuses to employ his shade is unknown, but it will likely be revealed alongside the Order’s other machinations asSoulsticecontinues.
There is one other hint as to the true nature of Chimeras woven intoSoulstice’s promotional materials. Mention has been made of Briar retaining her human form because of Lute. Lute’s abilities as a shade directly involve manipulating otherworldly forces and doing things such as using auras to debilitate enemy Wraiths. She could be doing the same with Briar at all times, andthe third head of aSoulsticeChimeramight be the corrosive power of a Wraith. Whatever the case, Briar will unlock sinister transformations as the game continues in a similar vein toDevil May Cry’s Devil Triggers. Even though this is flirting with a dangerous power, the true strength of a Chimera may still come from the bond between its components. Despite everything standing in their way, Briar and Lute’s sisterly love could be enough to see them through their quest.
Soulsticewill be released on Jul 10, 2025, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. A PC-exclusive demo is coming soon.
