MOTORSLICE is one of May 2026’s surprise indie hits — a stylish post-apocalyptic action-adventure where you play as “P,” a chainsaw-wielding Slicer tasked with destroying every machine inside a crumbling megastructure. Inspired openly by Nier: Automata and Shadow of the Colossus, it blends fluid parkour movement with brutal melee combat and towering boss encounters.
At $17.99 with Very Positive reviews and over 1,700 peak concurrent players at launch, it’s punching well above its weight class. Here’s everything you need to know to get started.
The Core Premise
You are P. You have a job: enter the megastructure, destroy all the machines, get out. Simple. Except the structure is massive, the machines range from mindless drones to colossal mechanical bosses, and your only tool is a chainsaw and your own body.
MOTORSLICE is designed around movement as a core mechanic, not just locomotion. You don’t just run to a fight — how you arrive shapes how the fight goes.
Movement: The Foundation of Everything
Before you worry about combat, learn to move. MOTORSLICE’s parkour system is built around:
Wall-running — Sprint toward a wall at an angle and P automatically runs along it. Use this to gain height quickly and reach ledges that look unreachable.
Slide-cancel — Slide into a sprint by pressing the slide button and immediately canceling it with a jump. This gives a burst of horizontal speed that no regular sprint can match.
Chainsaw swing — Your chainsaw isn’t just for damage. Swinging it while airborne carries forward momentum and can close gaps that jumping alone can’t cover.
Ceiling grab — Near overhanging structures, P can grab and swing from them. Look up constantly — the megastructure is vertical.
Beginner tip: Don’t fight gravity. MOTORSLICE rewards building speed downward and converting it into horizontal distance. Let yourself fall and redirect at the last moment.
Combat Basics
P’s chainsaw operates on a simple but deep system:
Light attack — Fast horizontal swings. Good for chaining combos and keeping pressure on mobile enemies.
Heavy attack — Slow but high damage. Staggers most small enemies completely. Don’t spam this on fast targets.
Aerial attack — Jumping before attacking changes the hitbox dramatically. Most aerial attacks have wider arcs and ignore some enemy guard states.
Revving — Holding the attack button before releasing charges a rev. A fully revved heavy attack cuts through multiple enemies at once.
Enemy Types for Beginners
| Enemy Type | Best Approach |
|---|---|
| Drones | Stay mobile; they target where you were, not where you are |
| Grounded machines | Aerial heavies; they can’t track upward fast |
| Shield machines | Circle behind; shields only cover one direction |
| Turrets | Rush in close; they can’t aim at point-blank range |
The Megastructure: How Levels Are Structured
Each section of the megastructure has a clearly marked objective — a large machine or cluster of machines to destroy. Between those objectives, the environment itself is a puzzle.
Key exploration principles:
- Every dead end has a reason. If a path ends, look up, look behind, or look for a wall-run angle you missed.
- Machines you’ve killed stay dead. You can safely move through cleared areas without re-engagement.
- Shortcuts unlock as you progress. Destroyed machines often collapse walls or activate platforms. Revisit cleared areas if you get stuck.
Boss Encounters: Shadow of the Colossus Rules Apply
MOTORSLICE’s bosses are the centrepiece of the game — massive mechanical constructs you must climb, disable, and destroy. The design philosophy borrows directly from Shadow of the Colossus:
- Study the boss before engaging. Bosses announce their attack cycles. Watch 2–3 full patterns before touching them.
- Weak points glow. Look for glowing joints, panels, or structures on the boss — those are your targets.
- Climbing and falling are combat tools. Most bosses require you to ride them, and falling off is expected. Use the megastructure’s walls to get back on.
- Speed matters more than damage. A quickly executed light combo on an exposed weak point beats a slow heavy from a bad angle every time.
Difficulty and Accessibility
MOTORSLICE has three difficulty settings:
- Slicer Mode (Easy) — More generous hitboxes, slower enemy attacks, no fall damage penalty
- Standard Mode — The intended experience
- Megastructure Mode (Hard) — Enemies hit harder and bosses have more aggressive patterns
For your first playthrough, Standard Mode is exactly right unless you have strong action game experience. The game is not trivially easy on Standard.
There is also an Assist Mode toggle in settings that adjusts hit detection and parry windows individually. Worth knowing about if specific mechanics are giving you trouble.
Tips for the First Hour
- Check your surroundings before every fight. MOTORSLICE arenas are almost always multi-level. Fighting on the ground is usually the worst position.
- Don’t hoard the boost mechanic. It recharges quickly — use it constantly during movement, not just emergencies.
- The chainsaw never needs sharpening or reloading. It’s your only tool for the whole game. Get intimate with it.
- Cutscenes are skippable after the first watch. There’s no penalty for skipping them on repeat playthroughs.
Why MOTORSLICE Is Worth Your Time
At under $18, MOTORSLICE delivers a tightly focused 9–10 hour experience with excellent movement feel, distinctive anime aesthetic, and boss encounters that genuinely challenge your spatial awareness. It doesn’t overstay its welcome. If you enjoyed Nier: Automata’s vibe, Metal Gear Rising’s chaos, or Shadow of the Colossus’s scale, this scratches all three itches at a fraction of the cost.
The developer has also confirmed post-launch content patches, so the megastructure is only going to get bigger.
ALSO READ: Enclaved Beginner Guide: Essential Steps for Success
Pritish Samantaray
Olatunde-Bada