Recently remastered and released for free on Steam, Knytt Classic dusts off the classic freeware indie game by Nifflas, Knytt, for modern systems. When Knytt originally released, I downloaded it and tried to play, but the keyboard-only controls proved to be a huge impediment to my immersion. But when I saw that Chasm developer, Bit Kid, updated the title, complete with updated graphics, modern gamepad controls, and achievements, I knew I had to give it another go. Twenty years later, Knytt stands the test of time and shines in its new format.
Ten years ago, we were given a gift in the form of Super Meat Boy on Xbox Live Arcade. At the time, we’d never really seen anything like it. Smaller indie downloadable games were really just starting to enter the mainstream consciousness of gaming and Super Meat Boy effectively kicked the door in and made clear that these smaller titles had something special to offer and were here to stay. And since that statement, myriad other developers have taken lessons from Super Meat Boy and its DNA can be seen in so many games that would follow. However, this creates an interesting predicament that Team Meat needed to solve - how do you offer a sequel that manages to bring something new to the table, while still feeling as simple and approachable (and difficult) as the original did?
While GRIS is a short, 3-4 hour experience that doesn't take a whole lot of gaming skill for most of its run-time, don't be fooled into thinking there aren't legitimately challenging platforming and puzzle sections. Whether this immerses you more in GRIS's world or is just an interruption to your good time depends on what kind of games you like, but I'd say it's well worth the experience.
My kids love Paw Patrol. They’ve been Marshall for Halloween, they’ve got a whole mess of the toys. They’ve watched countless hours of the show. Needless to say, when I saw that a game based around the show was due for release, I knew that one way or another it would find its way into my house. While it’s a pretty simplistic platformer, my kids greatly enjoyed it despite its flaws.
At first pass, you may mistake Wandersong for a game about a bard who’s trying to save the world. I wouldn’t blame you, because while that is what it seems on the surface, more importantly Wandersong is a game about emotions and relationships. It’s about conquering your fears and adversity, doing what’s right even when everyone else is telling you it’s wrong. It’s about leaning on your friends when you can’t do something by yourself, and yes, it’s about singing your heart out even when nobody wants to hear you.
MagiCat is a fascinating example of a game. While it’s not particularly great, it takes a simple concept and tries everything and anything possible with the idea to see what sticks. Oftentimes it’s frustrating and cheap, other times brilliant and fun, it all depends on what level you’re in and what gimmick is on display.
Velocity 2X, by all measures, is a well made game. It has a pretty extensive amount of content including 50 core levels with a healthy number of objectives to achieve in each, a set of unlockable puzzle-based bonus levels, and the Switch version even includes the DLC out-of-the-box. But even after completing the whole game, I never really felt satisfied with it. While there’s a lot of content, each level feels similar to the last and this lack of diversity eventually wore me down. By the time the credits rolled, I was relieved to be done with it.
It’s exciting to finally be playing a new mainline Mega Man game, especially after the whole debacle with Mighty No. 9. While I actually enjoyed what MN9 had to offer and thought it was a capable Mega Man clone, nothing is quite like the real thing. When Capcom surprise sprung on us last week that the demo was available on the eShop (as well as the PlayStation and Xbox store fronts) I couldn’t dive in quickly enough. Featuring just one robot master, Block Man, we were given a small glimpse into what the game will have to offer and I walked away impressed and even more excited for the full release.
There’s an itch that super challenging platformers scratch for me that other games just can't. While it’s always nice to dig into a classic platformer like Mario or something a bit more unique like Rayman, getting my fix of games like Super Meat Boy and N++ is a necessity. Shio fits very nicely into that niche and offers a decent chunk of gameplay, a unique hook that differentiates it from the crowd, and healthy offering of secrets to extend the experience.
One of my favorite things about being a gamer is that most games expect me to assume an identity outside of myself; someone or something that is capable of amazing and impossible feats, powers or talents that are beyond anything I will ever grasp in my actual life. N++, the platformer sequel to the popular N and N+ games, bestows a unique new persona upon us: you are a ninja with an accelerated metabolism. You are able to use momentum to run, jump, climb, collect and pass through a series of five levels like a boss. What’s the catch? Your lifespan is only 90 seconds.
Wooden Sen’Sey is one of those unfortunate games that has charm and style and comes so close to greatness, but sadly falls short. The abundance of quality platforming games on the Wii U makes it hard to turn a blind eye to the faults of Wooden Sen’Sey. Simple shortcomings like awkward controls (particularly for grappling), levels that overstay their welcome, and a lack of new abilities really drag down an otherwise great experience.
This review is part of the 2014 Sh*tty Game Review Fest - read about the event here.
I hope there is a special place in Hell for Nintendo Wii shovelware developers. Gummi Bears, The Magic Medallion alone would win Storm City Games and everyone else involved with it prime oceanfront property at the sea of fire. With platforming gameplay akin to wading through mud, and graphics similar to a bad Sega Game Gear game, this game, frankly, makes me want to dismantle the developer so they never strike again.
If you know the company, Shin’en, it’s likely that you associate them with their well-crafted shooters, and not the platforming genre. But back on the Wii, the team charted into these new grounds with Jett Rocket. The WiiWare title was a decent attempt at a 3D platformer that now has a follow-up on the 3DS eShop. Jett Rocket II: The Wrath of Taikai takes a slightly different approach, blending both 2D and 3D platforming, while working in an assortment of mini-games to break up the fifteen core levels. The brief experience is enjoyable at times, but more frequently blasé, being outclassed by other titles in both variants of the platforming genre.
I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t realize that Cloudberry Kingdom is entirely made up of randomly generated stages. They demand a level of precision and contain enough traps that you’d think some masochistic level designer was madly laughing as he put most of them together. Of course, this does speak volumes of the quality of the level generator that sits behind this intensely challenging 2D platformer, but without anything pulling everything together, it’s more of a never ending gauntlet of disparate levels than a game.
Old school games are here to stay, thanks to gems like Guacamelee, a fun 2D beat-'em-up/platformer with endearing characters and dialogue and a distinct Mexican flavor. It's filled to the brim with humor and now-ancient video game references to Mario, Zelda, and Metroid that will leave you laughing at how blatant they are. Its setting, music, and modern design choices all work together to make something new enough that you'll forget you're off yet again to save una otra princesa.
Two years ago, Rayman hit the scene with one of his most inspired adventures yet. It took series staples and wove them into one of the most beautiful and interesting platformers I’d ever seen. Well, Rayman Legends is now here and it somehow manages to surpass Rayman Origins in every way imaginable. It applies the same great platforming to gorgeous new inspired worlds and even manages to make it enjoyable for more than one concurrent player this time around.
SteamWorld Dig is one of those completely out of left field games. Before it hit the market, I had no idea it was even a thing that existed. Shortly after witnessing a small sample of the gameplay, my interest level shot through the roof; rightfully so, as it turns out. This mining action-platformer is innovative, interesting, and fun from end to end.
PAX East just kicked off today in Boston, but we may already have born witness to what may be the event’s biggest announcement. Capcom has announced that they will be resurrecting one of the most beloved platformers of all time. That’s right, DuckTales is making a comeback this year.
Beautiful aesthetics, wonderful music, and just about perfect controls are all you could hope for in a platformer save one very important factor and this eluded me for a while. I couldn’t figure out with so many great things going on in Pid why I hated it so very deeply. Eventually I realized that its well-crafted elements were completely overwhelmed by the boring, mediocre, and at times maddening level design. It’s a shame that the designers primarily focused on the window dressing bits instead of considering all the things you would actually be doing when you play. Pid struggles with knowing what sort of levels it wants to present, switching from puzzles to difficult platforming to stealth to long periods of just waiting around or running in a straight line. Each of these disparate level types (and more) are middling at best on their own and when combined are a complete drag. Pid’s wonderful presentation can’t save it from the tedium packed into every single minute of its tortuous length.
Being the fourth entry in the series, prepending “New” to the title seems disingenuous. Despite tossing in a new power-up in the form of a flying squirrel suit, New Super Mario Bros. U is more of the same tried-and-true gameplay the series is known for. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a bad thing, but it’s hard not to feel some fatigue with the now familiar art style, level layout, and presentation. Despite this fatigue, there’s little question that New Super Mario Bros. U is the strongest title in the subseries and a fond callback to both Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World.
As someone who cut his teeth on Super Mario Bros., Mega Man, and Sonic the Hedgehog, I have a fondness for the 8- and 16-bit sprite art classic style, but I also want to see games that evolve the 2D platformer and bring it into the 21st century. I often ask myself how things would be if the games industry never moved on to polygons but instead kept refining their sprites for 25 years. What would that game look like? Thanks to Arkedo and their new game Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit I have my answer, and that answer would be “pretty damn sweet.”
Due to its rarity, Tomba has become highly sought after for fans and collectors alike. The title, created by the now defunct Whoopee Camp, was the brain child of Ghosts'n Goblins creator/Mega Man producer Tokuro Fujiwara. While the multi-plane sidescroller has Fujiwara's signature, it doesn't quite capture the magic of his prior works, especially 15 years after its release.
With the release of a “mystery” screenshot the other day, Sega essentially let the cat out of the bag and practically told the world that they would be publishing Ron Gilbert’s pet project being developed at Double Fine. Today Sega and Double Fine came straight out and confirmed that Ron Gilbert’s secret project, titled The Cave, will be published by Sega in early 2013.
Closure has been haunting gamers since its release, and it’s easy to see why. A two dimensional, monochromatic platformer almost entirely shrouded in darkness, this game has the ability to teach all of its players how to see the light.
Similar to the classic arcade games popularized in the early 80s, Canabalt is a fun, arcade-style game that can be played with a single finger. It has a simple premise that anyone can immediately understand: run, run for your life! As giant robots lay waste to the city in the distant background and space ships rocket overhead, all you can do is run from the destruction, jumping over obstacles and hopping gaps between crumbling buildings. This is a game scored not in points or lives, but how far you can make it before the inevitable happens and you fall to your doom.