Pizza Tower was a game I first heard about through a friend backing it, but it didn't really catch my interest until I saw people playing it, and it looked FUN. It's an extremely fast-placed platformer that encourages you to move nonstop and play as skillfully as you can. Even if you stink at it, there's still a lot of enjoyment to be had through its good level design and great humor. Pizza Tower is one of the best (and definitely one of the weirdest) 2D platfomers I've ever played.
Gameplay:
Pizza Tower borrows a lot from the Wario Land series, and while I've never played those games myself, I am at least familiar enough to know that that means. You're meant to keep going without stopping, all while maintaining a score and platforming through constantly evolving level design. Pizza Tower gives the player a lot to work with in their moveset. You can a jump, a run, a wall run, a tackle, a groundpound, and so much more. There's a lot ways to use each move too. Then there's also the many power-ups, which are usually unique to certain levels. There is a LOT to master in Pizza Tower when it comes to movement alone. It took me a while to even get a handle on it.
The game has a good number of levels with widely varied level design across them. Despite how much they vary in gimmicks and aesthetic, they're all pretty consistent in quality. There were a couple levels that had me feeling "meh", but not bad. They all throw non-stop interesting scenarios at you, keeping you on your toes and making for an exciting experience. the structure of the levels first appears to be a standard "go from point A to B", they actually change it up at the end each time by having you run back to point A in a mad dash against the clock. These sections can be very intense since your progress is on the line. If you run out of time, you have to replay the whole level. This sucks big time since it is literally at the end of a level, but for most levels it's a non-issue, and you can reach the end on time easily even on your first time through. Each level has 6 collectibles, 5 being fairly easy to obtain, but the 6th requiring some extra effort. You also get a rank on each level according to your score. The score ranks are the main incentive to replay levels and hone your skills. Once you master a level, you can go for a P rank, which requires you to keep your score throughout an entire level while also getting all of the collectibles in one go. I personally lack the brain computing power to have the reaction speed needed for this, but I have seen videos and it looks awesome to pull off.
The boss fights carry the same fun momentum. They're all punchy, intense, and challenging. They have the same ranking system as the levels, making them another thing for you to get good at.
Sound and Visuals:
The music in Pizza Tower is awesome! There's some really good tracks that fit the pace of the gameplay perfectly. The sound design is also really good with many sound effects that really add to the game's humor.
The visual presentation was my personal highlight of Pizza Tower. The art style is extremely chaotic and silly. The character designs are weird and the animations are crazy. Yet, despite the chaos, it also feels very polished. The art and animation never devolves into chaotic scribbles and always has good clarity. The visuals designs for the levels and hub areas are also as varied as the level design housed within them, helping them stand out strongly from each other. There's also tons of fun references to pop culture hidden (and not so hidden) throughout. Overall, Pizza Tower has great visuals with lots of love and wackiness poured into them, oftentimes ending up being really funny.
Conclusion:
Pizza Tower is a excellent 2D platformer. The effort and care that was put into it is evident. The large moveset was made to be perfected. The levels are well-crafted and challenging. The presentation only elevates it all with its unique and funny vibes. This is absolutely a game for those who love platformers with high skill ceilings. It's a good time for casual players too, but you definitely won't get the experience the full scope of this game's depth without going for perfection... I'm speaking from experience lol. But yeah, great game. Would recommend.
Gameplay:
Pizza Tower borrows a lot from the Wario Land series, and while I've never played those games myself, I am at least familiar enough to know that that means. You're meant to keep going without stopping, all while maintaining a score and platforming through constantly evolving level design. Pizza Tower gives the player a lot to work with in their moveset. You can a jump, a run, a wall run, a tackle, a groundpound, and so much more. There's a lot ways to use each move too. Then there's also the many power-ups, which are usually unique to certain levels. There is a LOT to master in Pizza Tower when it comes to movement alone. It took me a while to even get a handle on it.
The game has a good number of levels with widely varied level design across them. Despite how much they vary in gimmicks and aesthetic, they're all pretty consistent in quality. There were a couple levels that had me feeling "meh", but not bad. They all throw non-stop interesting scenarios at you, keeping you on your toes and making for an exciting experience. the structure of the levels first appears to be a standard "go from point A to B", they actually change it up at the end each time by having you run back to point A in a mad dash against the clock. These sections can be very intense since your progress is on the line. If you run out of time, you have to replay the whole level. This sucks big time since it is literally at the end of a level, but for most levels it's a non-issue, and you can reach the end on time easily even on your first time through. Each level has 6 collectibles, 5 being fairly easy to obtain, but the 6th requiring some extra effort. You also get a rank on each level according to your score. The score ranks are the main incentive to replay levels and hone your skills. Once you master a level, you can go for a P rank, which requires you to keep your score throughout an entire level while also getting all of the collectibles in one go. I personally lack the brain computing power to have the reaction speed needed for this, but I have seen videos and it looks awesome to pull off.
The boss fights carry the same fun momentum. They're all punchy, intense, and challenging. They have the same ranking system as the levels, making them another thing for you to get good at.
Sound and Visuals:
The music in Pizza Tower is awesome! There's some really good tracks that fit the pace of the gameplay perfectly. The sound design is also really good with many sound effects that really add to the game's humor.
The visual presentation was my personal highlight of Pizza Tower. The art style is extremely chaotic and silly. The character designs are weird and the animations are crazy. Yet, despite the chaos, it also feels very polished. The art and animation never devolves into chaotic scribbles and always has good clarity. The visuals designs for the levels and hub areas are also as varied as the level design housed within them, helping them stand out strongly from each other. There's also tons of fun references to pop culture hidden (and not so hidden) throughout. Overall, Pizza Tower has great visuals with lots of love and wackiness poured into them, oftentimes ending up being really funny.
Conclusion:
Pizza Tower is a excellent 2D platformer. The effort and care that was put into it is evident. The large moveset was made to be perfected. The levels are well-crafted and challenging. The presentation only elevates it all with its unique and funny vibes. This is absolutely a game for those who love platformers with high skill ceilings. It's a good time for casual players too, but you definitely won't get the experience the full scope of this game's depth without going for perfection... I'm speaking from experience lol. But yeah, great game. Would recommend.