This game is a lot of fun I think it's darn near everything a great platformer should be, it's bright and visually appealing without having that cloying cutesy thing going on, the difficulty is just enough where it's not too hard but not too easy, you get better as you go on, the dungeons and world layout are arranged so that you can explore them more as you get upgrades and your character can change into new monster forms, the bosses are big and are fun events, I think the game is at its best when you have to rapidly toggle between the different monster forms to make use of their different talents in tandem, that's when it makes you think fast and strategise a little, especially during the fantastic final boss fight! A very charming platforming adventure game indeed, you can't go wrong if you like the genre and lean more towards the old style aesthetic with your games sometimes, I had myself a blast, solid gem of a game, lots of fun to play, better than the Shantae games!
3 Reviews
Nostalgic, fun, but such a slow-moving character
heath-jeffrey1 September 2023
It seems to strike just the right balance between being a modern game and yet still retaining the feel of the original games for nostalgia.
Importantly, it's based mostly on the third in the series, when the character could change into various animals. That was when it took on a kind of Castlevania feel, in that there were areas you couldn't access at first, but which opened up later. The typical examples being when you can see a ledge early on but it's too high, and when water is blocking your path - but later on, you gain a double-jump ability and the ability to swim. (Not that these are necessarily in this game - I'm using generic examples to avoid spoiling).
To me, that kind of thing is what really makes games fun. It creates a sense of exploration and makes you feel clever when you remember to return to a certain place after unlocking a relevant skill.
Unfortunately, there's one, tiny bit impactful problem. The character moves *so* slowly for a modern game. And to compound the issue, much of what you do involves both back-tracking to previously travelled areas (to try out new abilities), and falling off things only to have to go back to the beginning where the only ladder is, etc. So the character speed quickly becomes a frustrating, dragging experience.
It looks like you might be able to unlock 'shoes' with greater speed values. But making the early game dull in order to build to something better later on seems like a pretty poor design decision.
Still, overall a very solid continuation of what was one of the greatest series of games of its time.
Importantly, it's based mostly on the third in the series, when the character could change into various animals. That was when it took on a kind of Castlevania feel, in that there were areas you couldn't access at first, but which opened up later. The typical examples being when you can see a ledge early on but it's too high, and when water is blocking your path - but later on, you gain a double-jump ability and the ability to swim. (Not that these are necessarily in this game - I'm using generic examples to avoid spoiling).
To me, that kind of thing is what really makes games fun. It creates a sense of exploration and makes you feel clever when you remember to return to a certain place after unlocking a relevant skill.
Unfortunately, there's one, tiny bit impactful problem. The character moves *so* slowly for a modern game. And to compound the issue, much of what you do involves both back-tracking to previously travelled areas (to try out new abilities), and falling off things only to have to go back to the beginning where the only ladder is, etc. So the character speed quickly becomes a frustrating, dragging experience.
It looks like you might be able to unlock 'shoes' with greater speed values. But making the early game dull in order to build to something better later on seems like a pretty poor design decision.
Still, overall a very solid continuation of what was one of the greatest series of games of its time.
This game is amazing
jybr-0917823 January 2021
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
