You should play Twin Blades: The Reaping Vanguard because sometimes there is nothing else to do except mindlessly slash through zombies.

I took a philosophy class in college — even though philosophy was not my major — and the professor and students would talk for hours about really mundane topics, such as wearing watches or tying shoes. One day, I daringly asked, “Why are we talking about making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich like it is a life-changing experience?”

The professor answered, “Because sometimes there is nothing else to do.”

I still don’t think his answer was particularly deep, especially for a philosophy professor, but I can accept that answer. I’ve always wanted to share this reasoning and never had the opportunity until now.

Twin Blades is a side-scrolling action game with a horror theme. Players control a medieval nun — yes, nun — through a quaint village as she slashes zombies with a giant scythe. The scythe’s size forces the nun to comically drag it behind her as she hurries through the town. Attacking zombies randomly pop out of the ground, and they range in difficulty as players progress through levels, known as days. The most difficult zombies wear pots and pans for armor. The challenge presented is to survive 31 days fighting village zombies and gain the highest score.

The game offers a variety of attack modes. The nun’s main attack is a melee move featuring a twirling slash with her scythe. She also possesses a ranged attack and is initially given a handgun as her ranged weapon. It can be upgraded to other weapons, such as a flamethrower or an ice gun. Upgrades are also available for new melee combo moves and attributes. All upgrades are purchased with zombie hearts gained from killing zombies. One zombie kill yields one zombie heart, so hearts accumulate quickly.

The nun’s attributes include a life bar and an energy bar. Life is gained through collecting refills that randomly drop from zombies. Energy is only gained from using her melee ability. This means that it is impossible to rely alone on ranged weapon since ranged weapons require energy. It also becomes impossible to rely on melee alone by Day 10. For some players, this may present a challenge. I feel that seasoned gamers will enjoy Twin Blades more for its other elements, such as the graphics and theme.

The art design is manga-inspired and very ornate. The graphics are incredibly cute and bright for a horror genre game. In fact, the graphics are incredibly cute and bright for any game type. The animated backgrounds that create the village are especially involved, featuring market stands, churches and graveyards with a sky that darkens to simulate the passing of the day. The animated details take the scenes to the next level as fruit baskets sway in the market and candles flicker in the abandoned church.

Character animations are humorous. The nun’s movements, from her idle stance to her swirling attacks, are all visually engaging. The zombie death scenes include decapitations, dismembered parts and random blood splatters. Again, it all looks really cute. For example, Twin Blades mastered cute blood, and I had previously thought “cute blood” was an oxymoron. I admit I am a horror fan, so I appreciate this addition to the genre. However, because of the cartoon element, not all hardcore horror fans will be interested in this style. It’s perhaps more appealing to those who are familiar with anime or manga art than horror genre games.

The gameplay soundtrack is funny in a medieval techno dance track way. Obviously, I’m no music expert. I think it works nicely with the artistic style. I recommend that if someone hates it or grows tired of it, they can play his/her own music. (Who actually hates medieval techno?)

As for general strategy, Twin Blades allows for backwards motion and has no time limit. Naturally, slashing through zombies becomes monotonous. I created challenges for myself. I would hop over the zombies’ heads until they had gathered in a huge group and then slash them all at once or freeze them with my ice gun. Players can run through levels to finish the game at lightning speed or grind through zombies to collect zombie hearts. I played a combination of both styles. I do recommend some grinding since score is important.

Twin Bladesis available on Xbox Live Marketplace Indie Games and iTunes. Honestly, both sources are notorious for games with laughably bad graphics, so this game gets a nod for awesome graphic and animation work. All Indie Games are surprisingly affordable, and this is no exception at 240 Microsoft Points for the full game. I recommend that arcade gamers buy Twin Blades if they have extra points. Everyone else should play the demo to test out the game style and content.

Twin Blades is not a hard game. It’s not a scary game. It’s not a game bogged down with storyline. When I’m not feeling adventurous and have exhausted my collection of games, I play this game. I’m assuming my philosophy professor had run out of things to discuss and felt the same way I do when I turn to Twin Blades. Sometimes there is just nothing else to play.