ChainStaff drops you onto a mutated Earth with an alien on your head and exactly one tool to fix all your problems. That tool is the ChainStaff itself, and the entire game revolves around how well you learn to use it. Developed and published by Mommy's Best Games, ChainStaff is available now on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch for approximately $16. Across 10 hand-crafted levels, you'll face increasingly hostile creatures, make decisions that cost you either allies or upgrades, and die more than a few times before things click.
What exactly is the ChainStaff?
The ChainStaff is not just your primary weapon. It is your entire toolkit. According to the game's official description from Mommy's Best Games, the weapon operates on a single-button system designed to stay accessible without removing depth. That single input unlocks three distinct uses:
- Throw it like a spear to deal ranged damage at enemies before they close the gap
- Slam it into the ground to create a physical block against incoming attacks
- Use it as a grapple to swing through the environment and reposition quickly
The accessibility is real. You won't spend the first hour reading a control manual. The depth, though, comes from knowing which of those three uses to apply in a given situation and when to chain them together.
ChainStaff spear throw mode
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The grapple is not just for traversal. Swinging past an enemy group and repositioning behind them resets their attack timing and buys you a second to breathe.
How do the enemies work in ChainStaff?
The threat in ChainStaff comes from the Star Spores, an alien force that has infected Earth's wildlife and turned familiar creatures into aggressive, mutated versions of themselves. The source material from TheXboxHub describes enemies ranging from bug-like creatures to screen-filling boss monstrosities that require quick thinking and fast reactions.
Each of the 10 levels introduces something new, so the game rarely lets you settle into a single approach. What works against the smaller, faster enemies in early levels won't necessarily carry you through the larger threats later.
Reading enemy behavior
Deaths in ChainStaff are frequent, and the game expects them. Each run teaches you something specific: how a particular enemy telegraphs its attack, which positioning leaves you cornered, and how the ChainStaff's ground slam can interrupt a charge that would otherwise end your run. Treat early deaths as scouting missions rather than failures.
Star Spores enemy encounter
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Screen-filling boss enemies appear later in the game and require a different approach than standard enemies. Don't expect your early tactics to translate directly.
What are the soldier choices and why do they matter?
This is where ChainStaff gets interesting beyond pure combat. Throughout your run, you'll encounter stranded soldiers. You have two options:
According to TheXboxHub's coverage of the game, each decision shapes both your abilities and how your story plays out. There is no neutral path. Rescuing soldiers pulls the story one direction; harvesting them makes you stronger at a cost. The voice in your head will push you toward the harvest. Whether you listen is up to you.
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These choices are not reversible mid-run. Think before you act, because the upgrade from a harvest might carry you through the next level, but the story consequences accumulate.
How to survive ChainStaff's brutal difficulty
ChainStaff is, by design, unforgiving. Deaths come fast, sometimes from situations that look avoidable in hindsight. Here's what consistent survivors focus on:
Use the ground slam defensively
The slam isn't just for offense. Planting the ChainStaff creates a physical block. When an enemy charges and you're low on room to dodge, the slam buys you the split second you need. Practice triggering it reactively rather than planning it in advance.
Prioritize positioning over aggression
The grapple exists partly because standing still in ChainStaff gets you killed. Moving through the environment, using verticality, and keeping distance from larger enemies will extend your runs more reliably than trying to out-damage everything.
Learn the 10 levels incrementally
Each of the game's 10 hand-crafted levels has its own enemy composition and layout. Rushing through without learning the space is the fastest way to repeat a level. After clearing a section, take a moment to note what threatened you most and what use of the ChainStaff resolved it.
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Mommy's Best Games designed ChainStaff around a single-weapon philosophy. Every upgrade and mechanic feeds back into the ChainStaff itself, so investing time in understanding all three of its modes pays off across every level.
Is ChainStaff worth picking up?
At approximately $16, ChainStaff is a focused, opinionated action game built entirely around one idea and committed to it. The single-weapon system is genuinely flexible, the moral choices add texture to what could have been a straightforward action game, and the 10-level structure gives it a clear arc. It won't go easy on you, and some deaths will feel cheap before they feel instructive. But the game's core loop, learning the ChainStaff, reading enemies, making uncomfortable choices, holds up across the full run.
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