Kusarigama games: the chain and sickle in video games

A kusarigama is a sickle joined to a weighted chain. The chain end swings, entangles a weapon or a limb, and pulls; the blade finishes up close. In games it inspires a whole family of weapons that fight at two ranges at once: the chain far, the blade near.

Why it makes a good game weapon

Two ranges. A chain that controls space and a blade that ends the exchange.
Entanglement. Wrapping a target is a state, not just a hit: the target is held and can be pulled, thrown or swung.
Risk. A thrown chain is committed; if it misses, you are open.

From history to arena

Games rarely model a historical kusarigama exactly. They borrow its ideas: a blade on a chain, a wrap, a pull. Fantasy versions put blades on both ends, give the chain heads powers, or let the chain hook the scenery.

What to look for

Wraps that feel physical: the chain coils around what it hits.
A pull that moves bodies with weight.
Chain heads or weapons that change how the wrap behaves, not only the damage.

Where Chainbreaker fits. Chainbreaker is a chain-blade brawler in this family: two god-forged chains with blades, a wrap that steers the tip onto a target and holds it, a yank that throws, a slingshot along the rope. Five chain-heads (relics) each change the wrap: Emberfang sets fire, Moonhook slows and homes, Stormlash chains lightning, Tidebinder pulls harder, Gravemaker doubles the tip's mass. Relics are earned with Godsparks from boss kills, never sold.

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Questions

What is a kusarigama?

A Japanese weapon: a sickle joined by a chain to a weight, used to entangle and pull as well as cut.

Is Chainbreaker a kusarigama game?

It uses chain blades with wraps and pulls in the same spirit, in a fantasy setting rather than a historical one.

Are Chainbreaker's chain-heads sold?

No. The five relics are unlocked with Godsparks earned from boss kills.

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