SPINE gets Combat Trailer and Switch 2 Announcement

During last week’s Galaxies showcase, a few really interesting reveals took center stage. A few of these were projects I had not heard about in a while, such as SPINE, developed (and published) by Nekki. Now, not only have we gotten a new trailer, but there is a new platform announcement too.

SPINE is considered (by the devs) a “cinematic gun fu” action game, which seems very similar to what you would see in a John Wick film. As of last week, it was announced that in addition to the PC, PlayStation, and Xbox releases, the developers are aiming for a launch on the Nintendo Switch 2 as well. Here is what the press release says about the trailer and announcement:

“[Thursday] on the Twitch Galaxies showcase, developer and publisher Nekki revealed the new trailer for the cinematic gun fu action game SPINE, coming to PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and – announced [Thursday] – now targeting Nintendo Switch 2. SPINE is highly-anticipated by players, with more than 400,000 wishlists across all platforms.

[Thursday]’s trailer showcases SPINE’s Freeflow Gun Fu combat in which the protagonist, Redline, moves from enemy to enemy, parrying and disarming them, and turning their own weapons against them in seamless combos. Players can creatively use the physical environment against Redline’s opponents – crushing enemies against surfaces, throwing them from ledges, and fighting back with makeshift melee weapons for truly cinematic combat sequences that are different every time.

The trailer also includes the first tease of SPINE’s Hardcore mode. SPINE’s cinematic twist on ‘no-hit’ gameplay sees Redline wear sunglasses which will only remain intact if the player makes it through the game untouched by enemy attacks.”

Dmitry Pimenov, Game Director of SPINE commented on the combat, stating: “Freeflow Gun Fu combat means constant tactical awareness – both of your enemies and of the surroundings in which you fight.

For us, everything comes back to that cinematic experience, while always giving players complete control. We want to make players feel like both the star and the director of their own action movie, rewarding them with opportunities for creative takedowns by mastering the combo system and the environment, and showcasing their combos with dynamic camera angles to immerse them in the action.”

I’m very interested in seeing whether SPINE manages to keep the balance of quality combat and cinematic atmosphere. A lot of games could easily drop into the “form over substance” vibe with this, so hopefully Nekki’s work on SPINE keeps things intense and interesting throughout. We don’t have a release date yet, but we can likely assume that it will be after the Nintendo Switch 2’s June launch.