Remember Mirror’s Edge? The first person parkour game from 2008 that convinced an entire generation they could definitely survive a rooftop jump right up until their knees reminded them otherwise? Mash that together with the lonely emptiness of Ico, coat the whole thing in sand and rust, then imagine Mega Man Legends got dragged through a wave of modernization into 2026. That’s roughly where Motorslice lands. This is the second game from Brazilian developer Regular Studio after Togges, and it feels like a team taking a huge swing at something much, much bigger
You play as P, a slicer with short blue hair, an orange jumpsuit, slick goggles, and a chainsaw sword that’s about to make some bad decisions(or good ones depending on what end of the chain you’re on). P’s ability to seem chronically unimpressed is a whole vibe that screams of April Ludgate. Slicers are specially trained to enter massive structures called arrays and decommission the corrupted machinery hiding inside. This game sees P climbing a massive mega structure, trying to reach some unnamed goal at the top. P’s only companion is a floating orb named Orbie, which doubles as your camera and flashlight. Literally. The right stick camera movement is Orbie floating around the environment, and dust can build up on its lens until you click the stick and make the little guy blink it clean. Orbie doesn’t actually participate in helping P get past all the obstacles in her way aside from providing light when she finds herself engulfed in darkness. That’s done with her skill alone.
The atmosphere created in Motorslice does a lot of heavy lifting at the start. The array is half buried in sand and packed with broken machinery, collapsed platforms, and industrial debris that looks like it’s been cooking in the sun for a few hundred years. Everything looks dry and exhausted. There’s almost no organic life anywhere. Just giant dead machines and endless concrete stretching into the distance. Our adventure takes place entirely while the sun is riding high, but even during broad daylight the game feels weirdly haunting.
The low-poly, cel shaded-esque art style ties all of it together beautifully. Everything has this chunky, LEGO look to it, like somebody built a forgotten sci-fi civilization out of oversized plastic blocks. The sense of scale is just fantastic. There are many points in the early game where you can look up and take an educated guess to which platforms, ledges, and walkways you’ll eventually traverse. Likewise, as the game progresses and you climb higher and higher in the array, you’ll be able to look down at the right moment and see the places you’ve already visited. That kind of foreshadowing and remembrance goes hand-in-hand with good game design.
Movement is where Motorslice really shines though. This is technically an action platformer, but really leans into the platforming end of the spectrum. The main thing that will get you through the nine chapters is P’s parkour skills. She’ll be doing any combination of wall running – horizontal and vertical – wall jumping, vaulting, sliding, climbing and swinging to get through each room. Orange surfaces, called Motorwalls, let P stab her chainsaw sword into the wall and ride along it like some kind of industrial skateboard from hell. Motorslice teaches you these mechanics early on so you’re comfortable with them by the time the game ramps up the difficulty. As the challenge increases, so does the satisfaction you feel from completing sections and mastering those mechanics.
Combat is probably the weakest part of the package, though “weakest” feels harsher than it deserves. Most enemies are sentient construction equipment. The main enemies you’ll encounter are human sized excavators and the first boss is a massive dump truck. That should give you some more context for the OSHA violating future you’re inhabiting. Basic combat is simple hack and slash stuff with a parry mechanic. Colliding with incoming attacks staggers enemies and opens them up. It works fine. When compared to how fun navigating the environments are to normal combat it comes off a little lacking.
And then you get to the boss fights.
These boss encounters are easily the best part of the game. Earlier I mentioned Ico, but the real inspiration here feels closer to Shadow of the Colossus. The bosses, called Elder Machines, are massive industrial monsters towering over P like walking factories. Fighting them is basically one giant platforming sequence where you climb up and across their bodies. Motorwall panels line key areas on the Elder Machines and cutting each one takes another chunk of the boss’s health bar. The challenge doesn’t just lie in the approach to the boss. Once you begin your first cut, you’re in a grueling gauntlet that relies on the quickest of reaction times. You’ll need to figure out where to go on the fly. One wrong movement can mean your death. The later bosses are tough, making getting through them an affair of trial and error where each death teaches you something new. Thankfully, checkpoints are incredibly generous both in these boss fights and throughout the game.
While you’re getting from checkpoint to checkpoint in each chapter you’ll find that the path before you isn’t exactly linear. Exploration plays a huge role in Motorslice and will reward you with secrets in the form of lost drones just like Orbie. These secrets won’t just be handed to you, though. Getting through them will be some of the biggest tests of your skills in the entire game, and isn’t the end of their story. You’ll need to bring these drones back to designated spots to seal the deal. There is no map or waypoints in Motorslice, so finding these hidden drones can be a bit of a struggle. This is where P’s goggles come in handy. They’re not just for show, you can put them on at any point to scan your surroundings. One of the things revealed to you is the location of nearby drones, making the real challenge figuring out how to physically reach them. This kind of self-guided exploration really adds to the overall desolate tone. You’re here alone, there’s nothing to help you but your own skill and intuition.
Because all this jumping, climbing, and fighting sentient construction equipment can wear a girl down. Sometimes P will want to slack off mid-mission. If you choose to allow her lolly-gagging, you’ll learn a little more about P, her job, and the world as a whole. This is how you find out things like what those containers dangling from her waist are and why her name is P. These sequences allow P to interact with Orbie, as well. Which results in a multiple choice decision where you speak to Orbie. These conversations are multiple choice but usually end up in one of two camps: neutral indifference or thirsty simp comments.
If you couldn’t tell already, Motorslice is definitely a Buy It. Is it perfect? Of course not. Subtle movements aren’t always the easiest thing to do. A simple tap of the jump button turns P into an olympic distance jumper. At times, if you try to creep your way towards a ledge to drop down, she gives you a little leap instead. Regardless of if there’s any ground that far out to catch her. None of that detracts from the overall experience. Motorslice is a fun, challenging adventure that brings personality and a weird sense of humor along with it. It’s available on Steam, PS5, and it’s up on Game Pass for all you fellow Xbox owners out there.
