Developer Sad Cat Studios has confirmed that players can get an early taste of the cyberpunk-thriller Replaced, as a demo for PC will go live starting February 11. Set in an alternate version of America in the ’80s, the 2.5D platformer puts players inside the gumshoes of Reach–Research Engine for Altering and Composing Humans–an AI that finds itself trapped inside a human body and on the hunt for answers.
While the game focuses on exposing the sinister secrets of Phoenix Corporation, Replaced also features plenty of action with a free-flow beat-’em-up combat system inspired by Rocksteady’s Batman: Arkham games.
Players can also explore the dystopian environments, and Reach will have to deal with unfamiliar human instincts, emotions, and themes of identity on their mission. Sad Cat Studios has also highlighted the game’s hand-crafted design in previous previews, combining pixel-art with modern visual effects and a synth-driven soundtrack to set the mood.
“All of the game’s animations are hand-drawn, which means we are not taking any shortcuts when producing those literal hundreds of sprites,” the studio said in a dev blog. “Maybe in the future we will use other tools and techniques, and we have tried many, but with Replaced we really want to honour the craft.”
First announced back at E3 2021, Replaced has been hit with numerous delays due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Sad Cat was originally based in the country of Russian ally Belarus, and with the studio opposing the war, it relocated to Cyprus in 2022 out of concern for its team’s safety. Replaced will also launch for Xbox Series X|S on March 12 as a console-exclusive, and it’ll also be available as a day-one release for Xbox Game Pass.
