Ariana and the Elder Codex Demo Impressions

Written by Ross Locksley on 17 Feb 2026

Ariana and the Elder Codex tells the tale of four books of elemental magic once gifted to humanity. Thanks to a magical pen these books were expanded to create three more volumes, but an unknown force changed the books and thus magic receded from the land. Ariana is a librarian that is able to repair these books, starting with the book of water. 

Coming from idea Factory and Hyde (who are also behind Guardians of Azuma) the game sports a decidedly anime aesthetic which is of course mana for me. The game itself takes on a side-scrolling point of view, with Ariana fighting her way across the Codex of Earth in this demo, which is one of seven available in the main game. Because this is a demo, you'll have access to spells and items that may not exist in the same space as the main game, and save data can't be transferred, so this is very much a sandbox where you can dabble to get the gist of things. 

There's no preamble or story before you get to the gameplay, save a ghostly shrine maiden noticing some earthquake activity. Ariana appears at the same point and wonders how safe this journey is going to be. 

The magical effects really make the game pop

You're armed with a standard attack (which can be charged) as well as three magical attack elements which float behind you - in this instance, fir, water and whatever yellow is. Your attacks are mapped at the bottom right of the screen, and pressing the rear R-button will allow you to switch to other magic - projectiles and healing. Attacks will show damage against each enemy, much like a turn-based RPG, but in this game you have free movement throughout combat. 

Ariana herself sways and moves with a lot of grace - her animation is very cute and she's a pleasure to control in combat. On my first playthrough I relied too much on standard attacks and ended up getting killed pretty quickly - you really have to make use of the magic at your command - in particular I found switching my magical attacks to Wind I managed to knock enemies back and do a lot of damage. I also discovered the healing magic that would have helped me the first time around...

As you progress, you'll discover tears in the fabric of the story and you'll need to enter these tears to repair them. These are a race against time to defeat enemies that enter the enclosed space, so you'll need to be fast and brutal. Once you clear the area, Aria will use her magical quill to fix the damage and you can leave the area. The transition between map points is a turning page, which is a nice graphical nod to the action being set inside a book. 

Combat is fun and intuitive once you understand the systems

Enemies are nice and varied even early on - they range from ground troops to much larger shield-wielding foes and magicians, which are tough as nails unless you use your abilities to give them a good kicking. The magicians in particular will use a range of attacks, from flying orbs to dropping boulders on you, it's always worth hanging back to assess exactly what you're up against. Unlike a lot of Metroidvania's, you can't just run around hacking enemies to bits, they're just too dangerous to run into with abandon.

Exploration is made easier with a double jump, and like any good Metroidvania there are hidden chests around the level to discover that contain magical items and currency. You'll have to work against the clock however, you only have a finite amount of time in the demo before it's game over, so you'll likely get a few runs out of the game as I did. 

I don't want to give away too much, but Ariana and the Elder Codex looks to be an exciting and well-executed example of the genre. Once you have a hang of the magical attacks available and you're able to intuitively select the best option for each opponent, the game is an exciting mix of exploration and combat. Graphically the game is appealing, using pastel colours and imaginative characters to keep the world feeling engaging.

The game releases on the 24th March for PS4, PS5, Switch and Steam - and if you're wondering, the game plays flawlessly on the Steam Deck!