During the Future Games Show at Gamescom 2026, developer Moonwell Games unveiled its anime-inspired side-scrolling beat ‘em up game, Last Ditch Effort. The title was showcased with a trailer that, while offering a few glimpses of gameplay, was largely focused on showing off its slick art style, gorgeous pixel art, and seemingly dark story.
Last Ditch Effort has been described as a narrative-driven character-action game with an emphasis on fast, expressive combat in the vein of Bayonetta and Devil May Cry. The player takes on the role of Igor Emmerich and has to fight through several enemies in dramatic showdowns. Every single character in the game features hand-drawn animation, with the main storytelling taking its cues from comics.
The ultimate goal of the story seems to revolve around Igor, the last Einherjar of a fallen order, hunting down his mentor. This is because his old master wants to create a wish-granting gate, which also demands a heavy price to be paid. The world itself has been ravaged by wars that never seem to end. Despite this bleak setting, however, humanity remains optimistic and hangs on to a future where strife might come to an end.
While not too many details about the gameplay of Last Ditch Effort have been revealed, the trailers, screenshots, and GIFs indicate that Igor will have access to a variety of different weapons. While many scenes show him taking on large foes with just his fists, he also seems to have a red katana, and even a gun, using which he is able to land the finishing blow on a boss.
Last Ditch Effort doesn’t have a release date and is being developed for PC.
