''Icey'' is a 2D side-scrolling hack-and-slash video game developed by FantaBlade Network and published by X.D. Network. It was released for

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and

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in November 2016, for Android in October 2017, and

Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...

in May 2018. The game involves a female cyborg's mission to defeat a villain named Judas and his robot minions, and can be played in a linear manner from beginning to end like a typical game. Alternately, the player may disobey the narrator's instructions and in doing so break the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

. The game received positive reviews from critics, who commended it as a good video game in its own right, elevated by its unusual meta-commentary.

Plot

The game revolves around Icey, a female cyborg who is on a mission to kill the evil Judas, who has supposedly destroyed the world, for unclear reasons. She fights against various small and large robotic enemies. However, if the player strays outside the directions given to them by the narrator, he becomes frustrated and even angry. At this point the game devolves into a meta-commentary on game development, with the game's developer even talking directly to the player.

Gameplay

The game plays as a 2D hack-and-slash game. The player uses a single weapon, but can perform quick combos with their sword. There is no block, but rather a dash that allows the player to become invulnerable - the player can also refill their shields by killing stunned enemies with a special kill move.

Development

The game initially contained Chinese voice-overs with English subtitles, but English and Japanese-language voice-overs were later added.

Reception

''ICEY'' received an aggregate score of 84/100 for its Windows version on

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

. Sawovsky of ''PLAY! Zine'' rated the game 8/10, calling the gameplay "excellent" and the meta-story "amusing", but criticizing its short length. Mateusz Zdanowicz of ''

Eurogamer ''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson. Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...

'' Poland rated the game 9/10 and gave it the Eurogamer Recommended award, calling the game "addictive" and its story "intriguing". Richard Atkinson of ''

Nintendo Life Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and other ...

'' rated the game 8/10, saying that while the game is short, exploring is enjoyable and the storytelling delivery "ingenious", but criticized its "simplistic" approach to battles.

Sales

The game sold over 2 million copies by August 2018.

References

{{Reflist Side-scrolling video games Hack and slash games 2016 video games Android (operating system) games Art games Video games developed in China Single-player video games Windows games IOS games PlayStation 4 games Nintendo Switch games Video games about cyborgs Video games about robots Video games featuring female protagonists Video games with commentaries