I’ve had my eye on Replaced for a while now. When I first saw it years ago, I was immediately hooked by its dark sci-fi aesthetic and some incredible looking pixel art. I could practically hear Vangelis’ epic “Blade Runner” score by looking at some of the screenshots. So, when opportunity came up to check out the new Replaced demo, I was very eager to dive in.

Having been in development since 2018 and first announced in 2021 at the Xbox and Bethesda Showcase, Replaced is the debut title from Sad Cat Studios. Over the years they have been transparent that they want to take their time with the title to ensure they meet the incredibly high bar they’ve given themselves, to deliver on the vision of the game they want to make. It’s currently set for release on April 14, 2026, for Xbox Series X|S and day one with Xbox Game Pass, and based on everything I’ve seen and played, I’m more than happy for them to take as much time as needed.

The story of Replaced takes place in a post-nuclear dystopia that looks torn out of every excellent cyberpunk noir thriller you can think of. When the demo starts, the AI companion R.E.A.C.H. tells me that we’ve just escaped from a research facility owned by the Phoenix Corporation. Their Damage Control Squad arrived on the scene and began to eliminate all witnesses to whatever mishap had occurred that fused the two of us together. Somehow, we’ve escaped. Now with this neural interface infused into Warren, the playable character, we’re beyond the Phoenix-City Wall and our objective is simple: Survive and uncover Phoenix Corporations’ motives.

We’ve gone hands-on with Replaced before – and seen how it blends platforming, action and stealth into a truly beautiful new form – but new to this demo was the Huxley gun ability (I’m told this is something that will be available at a later stage in the full game) which is a charge bar displayed as an outline of a gun in the lower-left part of your screen. Land enough consecutive hits on a foe and your meter will charge. Once full, you can unleash a stylish cinematic-like finishing move by pressing RT on your controller.

There were a variety of finishers, but one of my favorites had me flipping an enemy over on their head while still holding their arm taut and blasting them in the face while they lay helpless on the ground. It’s brutal, cold, and ruthless — which all seem to be what Replaced is going for here.

Combat is equally slick, where you can land quick jabs (X button), execute well-timed counters (Y button), and dodge away from stronger foes (A button) while taking down large groups of enemies. Each of my combat encounters placed me in these seemingly unfavorable odds – and then the punches started to flow.

Through my agility, fast hands, and well-timed counters is when I realized the odds were not stacked against me, but my enemies. The controls are exactly as responsive as you’d hope, and I was able to easily keep up the fast-flowing combat as my character would dodge swiftly away from punches, blaster rifle shots, and heavy, unblockable attacks.

I also got a taste of how the platforming and stealth elements play as well. As I navigated across this dark sci-fi 2D plane, I would find boxes to push to let me reach high ledges, ladders to climb, and rusted poles jutting out from buildings to swing from. Nothing too inherently challenging or tricky to figure out, but it is a sampling of how Replaced intends for you to interact with this world beyond just your fists.

I had some frightening motivation guiding me through much of this demo. A large and mysterious hover truck was nearly constantly in the background, hunting me down, armed with a red search light and giant sniper rifle that shoots metal spears. With its light always trying to suss out my location, I would move quietly from one piece of cover to the other, staying out of its sight, and continuing to progress to the next batch of enemy foes who signed up for a hurting.

All of this brought an added intensity to my surroundings – everything was out to get me, and it didn’t seem I had a friend in sight. That changes at the end of the demo – I won’t spoil the scene – but that concluded an extremely intense yet brisk look at this promising sci-fi platformer that leaves me with some eager questions to answer.

As much as I enjoyed beating up a variety of enemies, I’m really interested to know how combat will evolve from here. The Huxley was included specially for this demo, but will I have other unique, upgradable abilities? Will I have other finishing moves beyond just the Huxley? It’s just enough of a teaser to get me hooked on the larger promise that Replaced can deliver on not just its amazing looks, but engaging gameplay as well as a compelling sci-fi story.

Replaced is set to launch for Xbox Series X|S and day one with Xbox Game Pass on April 14, 2026.