Aztez

Aztez is a hybrid action-strategy game set in a fantastical Aztec world, blending turn-based empire management with intense real-time beat ’em up combat in side-scrolling 2D arenas. Players fight waves of enemies using fluid combos, weapon switching, parries, and aerial attacks, while balancing replayable missions that grow in difficulty to protect and expand their Aztec empire.

Aztez: Review

Introduction

In the blood-soaked annals of indie gaming, few titles evoke the raw, visceral thrill of ancient Mesoamerica quite like Aztez, a 2017 hybrid of side-scrolling brawlers and turn-based strategy that dares players to wield obsidian blades against hordes of foes while juggling the fragile politics of an empire on the brink. Developed over seven grueling years by a two-person team in Phoenix, Arizona, Aztez emerged from obscurity into a Steam launch overshadowed by market saturation, yet its legacy endures as a testament to uncompromised vision amid commercial heartbreak. This review argues that Aztez stands as a flawed masterpiece—a brutal fusion of arcade savagery and strategic tension that empowers players to feel like gods among men, even as its uneven genre marriage and punishing RNG prevent it from claiming broader pantheon status.

Development History & Context

Team Colorblind, the indie studio behind Aztez, was founded by artist/designer Ben Ruiz and programmer/business lead Matthew Wegner, both former police officers turned game developers operating out of a modest Tempe apartment in 2010-2012. Their debut project began as a passion-fueled experiment to capture the “badass” empowerment of high-octane action games like God of War and Devil May Cry, stripped of tedious downtime, blended with arcade minimalism and Aztec historical flair. Powered by Unity—a accessible engine ideal for small teams—the game targeted PC (Windows, macOS, Linux) with planned ports to PlayStation 4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One, and even Oculus Rift, though staffing shortages delayed consoles indefinitely (still unrealized as of 2025).

Early buzz built at PAX Prime 2013 and PAX East 2014’s Indie Megabooth, plus a 2014 GDC Xbox One demo, positioning Aztez as a stylish standout in the post-MadWorld monochrome wave. Aiming for a 2014 release, the duo missed by years due to “healthy but slow” progress, as Ruiz detailed in a candid 2014 blog post. They bootstrapped with investors, nights/weekends turning full-time, while navigating Unity’s asset importers (credited to Adam Mechtley) and custom systems like Yilmaz Kiymaz’s blood rendering.

The 2017 landscape was unforgiving: Steam’s Greenlight-to-Direct shift flooded the platform with indies, diluting visibility. Aztez launched August 1 amid 40 rivals, including Slime Rancher and Tacoma, in a post-Early Access era where hype cycles favored rabid fanbases. Priced at $19.99, it sold ~2,000 copies in two months—enough for critical acclaim but not investor payback—forcing contract work. As Wegner reflected in an Engadget interview, they’d ridden the indie wave’s crest only to crash into oversaturation, a cautionary tale of development bubbles bursting against market sin waves.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Aztez eschews verbose storytelling for emergent mythology, plunging players into a pre-colonial Aztec empire (circa 20 years before Cortés’ 1519 arrival) as elite “Aztez” warriors—customizable close-combat units embodying Eagle and Jaguar knights. No named protagonists or dialogue exist; narrative unfolds via turn-based metagame events: dissent in cities like Tenochtitlan, droughts, famines, epidemics demanding mass slaughters, or assassinations/princess marriages to quell unrest. Missions pit you against historical foes (rebel warriors) and mythological beasts (underworld entities), culminating in Spanish invaders with gunpowder and horses.

Themes revel in Aztec brutality: sacrifice as power, where stunned enemies yield blood for god summons (Wrath’s knockback waves, Rain’s heals), mirroring real rituals to Huitzilopochtli or Tlaloc. Empire expansion demands moral compromises—pay bribes, execute leaders, or risk collapse—evoking imperialism’s cost. The looming Spanish threat symbolizes inevitable doom, turning runs into desperate survival epics. Subtle lore via real cities (over 30), deities, and spoils (themed items) grounds fantasy in history, but minimalism borders opacity; no tutorials explain “Aztez” beyond implication, forcing manual dives. Critiques note cultural sensitivity (Aztec imagery as “controversial”), yet Ruiz’s Mexican heritage infuses authenticity, transforming violence into empowerment rather than exploitation. It’s a silent legend of hubris, where players “change legend into fact,” as one review poetically captured.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Aztez‘s core loop hybridizes turn-based 4X-lite metagame with real-time beat ’em up combat, creating replayable roguelite runs (1-hour campaigns) unlocked via arena mode. In empire phase, manage a scrolling map: allocate resources (gained via missions) to suppress dissent, deploy Aztez (lose all = game over), or unlock weapons/items. RNG dominates—random events (plagues, invasions) feel like “multiple choice” per Save or Quit, with shallow agency (expend resources/items escalating in cost). Progression resets post-run (minimal carryover), emphasizing high-score leaderboards over persistence.

Combat shines: 2D arenas host waves escalating in speed/difficulty. Direct control yields fluid hack-and-slash depth—light/heavy attacks, directional inputs, aerial juggles, parries, grabs, dashes (Cuphead-like), and D-pad weapon swaps (8 types: sword slashes, spear pokes, Witch’s Knife ground waves, club smashes). Combos build style points; sacrifice dizzy foes (risky, interruptible animation) fills blood meter for gods. UI is clean—HUD tracks health/blood/combos/enemies—but grayscale clutters (wall-of-enemies visibility issues). Innovations: on-the-fly swaps maintain momentum; enemy variety (shield blockers, spear stabbers, divers, magic users) demands adaptation. Flaws: RNG mission spikes unbalance (tough foes pre-unlocks), imprecise parries/grabs frustrate (10% success per users), strategy-combat disconnect (map choices rarely impact fights). Arena mode excels for mastery, but campaign slog tires without variation.

Mechanic	Strengths	Weaknesses
Empire Management	Quick decisions, thematic events	RNG-heavy, shallow (feels like hurdle)
Combat	Fluid combos, 8 weapons, sacrifices/gods	Interruptible risks, visual clutter, precision demands
Progression/UI	Replayable arena, clear HUD	Minimal persistence, opaque tutorials
Replayability	Procedural maps/enemies, leaderboards	Repetitive arenas, punishing resets

World-Building, Art & Sound

Set in a fantasy Aztec realm—valley of Mexico cities, underworld lairs—the world pulses with historical fidelity: 30+ real locales (Texcoco, Tlaxcala), elite warriors, gods. Atmosphere builds dread via escalating threats, blood as life-force tying mechanics to lore.

Visuals dazzle in monochrome palette (grayscale + crimson splatters), evoking MadWorld/Apotheon‘s historic side-scrollers. Ruiz’s handcrafted art—stark silhouettes, dynamic poses, blood physics—amplifies brutality; arenas feel alive with particle sprays, god summons. Yet, dense fights obscure (grayscale “wall” per reviews), demanding focus.

Sound design immerses: HG Templeton/Lorn’s pulsing score blends tribal percussion with electronic throb, syncing combo frenzy. SFX—guttural slashes, arterial gushes, god roars—heighten masochistic joy. No voicework suits minimalism, but impacts visceral feedback, elevating “badass” fantasy.

These elements forge cohesion: red blood spotlights violence amid desolation, sound punctuates empire’s fragility.

Reception & Legacy

Critically, Aztez garnered 81/100 Metacritic (4 critics): Destructoid’s 9/10 hailed “fluid combat” and replayability; GameCrate (8.3/10) praised genre fusion; COGconnected (80/100) lauded responsiveness; 336GameReviews (70%) noted shallow 4X. PC Gamer/PC Gamer spotlighted style; YouTubers like ACG/Caz dubbed it ActRaiser successor (8/10). Players averaged 2.5/5 (MobyGames, small sample)—fun combat vs. “bad fighting mechanics,” “dull board game.”

Commercially, disaster: 2,000 sales amid 40-launch-day crowd doomed finances (investor repayments stalled). Engadget’s postmortem blamed Steam saturation; devs pivoted to contracts, consoles AWOL. Reputation evolved to cult curiosity—Reddit/Steam “mostly positive” (79%), Epic freebie boosted visibility. Influence: Pioneered brawler-strategy hybrids (Hand of Fate 2 echoes), inspired historic indies, but warns of market pitfalls. No direct successors, yet credits overlap (Tunic, Duskers) hint networked legacy.

Conclusion

Aztez is a savage indie gem: exhilarating combat and Aztec authenticity redeem RNG-shallow strategy, birthing masochistic highs in a monochrome apocalypse. Yet, disjointed loops, visual clutter, and market misfortune cap its triumph. In video game history, it claims niche immortality—a bloody testament to two visionaries’ grit, echoing ActRaiser‘s ambition while cautioning dreamers. Verdict: Essential for brawler aficionados (9/10 combat, 6/10 overall); a historic “should’ve been big” that demands rediscovery. Play the arena first—become the god you were born to be.