At the time of this review, I’d have to recommend waiting for a sale, mainly because there will hopefully be patches by then. I had my share of fun all the way to the game’s completion, but as it stands the game is plagued with a lot of collision and animation bugs. You’ll often get stuck in level geometry or fall into the abyss.
I’ll take up some positives. The most important element of the game, the movement, is masterful. It takes a little while to learn but once you do it’s really satisfying, and you’ll find that you’re able to swing your way out of seemingly hopeless predicaments. The visual style is also great, reminds me personally of Megaman 64 which I rented a lot as a kid. The soundtrack is also another great work by Tee Lopes.
The main issues with the game could be sorted into what could be fixed and what couldn’t. The bugs can be fixed. Some elements in the levels could be adjusted, such as hazards that are difficult to see.
What can’t be adjusted are a lot of the level design choices, which could be perhaps best described as caused by a confused design philosophy. There’s a timer counting up and a score system, is the player supposed to be using the great moveset to zip through the level, or should they be systematically platforming and exploring around to find the often well-hidden side-quests and collectibles? Should a quick-witted player be able to grab everything in the first run, or will multiple attempts be needed? If so, why does the game alternate between both? Is the game about encouraging quick-witted nimbleness and momentum, or throwing water on the player with dull and punishing hazards? The water torrents are such an example, getting caught in one either drops you down into an abyss or deposits you to the bottom of a pool you can only sluggishly walk your way out of. Is it really more fun for lava to be instant death rather maybe cause a single merciful bounce first? All of this is further complicated by a lack of visual clarity that often makes it hard to judge exactly where Penny is in the moment, usually because the camera angle is not very well situated. The boss designs are similarly poor and feel rushed.
It’s a shame because very often the game feels awesome to play, with great designs that have you dashing and swinging acrobatically through a course. It’s the fact that you’re often brought to complete halt for bad reasons that makes it unfortunate that the game hasn’t really fulfilled its promise.
I’ll take up some positives. The most important element of the game, the movement, is masterful. It takes a little while to learn but once you do it’s really satisfying, and you’ll find that you’re able to swing your way out of seemingly hopeless predicaments. The visual style is also great, reminds me personally of Megaman 64 which I rented a lot as a kid. The soundtrack is also another great work by Tee Lopes.
The main issues with the game could be sorted into what could be fixed and what couldn’t. The bugs can be fixed. Some elements in the levels could be adjusted, such as hazards that are difficult to see.
What can’t be adjusted are a lot of the level design choices, which could be perhaps best described as caused by a confused design philosophy. There’s a timer counting up and a score system, is the player supposed to be using the great moveset to zip through the level, or should they be systematically platforming and exploring around to find the often well-hidden side-quests and collectibles? Should a quick-witted player be able to grab everything in the first run, or will multiple attempts be needed? If so, why does the game alternate between both? Is the game about encouraging quick-witted nimbleness and momentum, or throwing water on the player with dull and punishing hazards? The water torrents are such an example, getting caught in one either drops you down into an abyss or deposits you to the bottom of a pool you can only sluggishly walk your way out of. Is it really more fun for lava to be instant death rather maybe cause a single merciful bounce first? All of this is further complicated by a lack of visual clarity that often makes it hard to judge exactly where Penny is in the moment, usually because the camera angle is not very well situated. The boss designs are similarly poor and feel rushed.
It’s a shame because very often the game feels awesome to play, with great designs that have you dashing and swinging acrobatically through a course. It’s the fact that you’re often brought to complete halt for bad reasons that makes it unfortunate that the game hasn’t really fulfilled its promise.
2 Comments
@chandelierius I personally just ignored the denizens right from the start unless they were giving quests, but yeah it's a little confusing what the intent is there. I like your idea of being able to turn the timer off but honestly I think the main problem is that there's not a lot of visibility of the collectibles and side quests. I think of a recent example in Kirby and the Forgotten Land where an attentive enough player can get most or all of the collectibles in the course of a level on the first try, and even if you miss something you feel like it was on you for not looking in the right spots because it's so well-designed (in the case of that game some collectibles are only given the answer to after you've beat the level, which also feels fine). I can't count how many times I replayed levels in PBB where I feel like I had slogged my way through it turning over every stone and still have no idea where one of the coins are. Doesn't help that the game lets you traverse some level geometry that it feels like you shouldn't have access to, did they hide it way over on this decorate wall?
chandelierius
1 month ago
i think simply adding an option to turn the timer off (like in mania) would have gone a long way to letting different kinds of players enjoy the experience. people who want to spend more time poking around can turn the pressure off and take their time, and players who want to blast through it and wrack up combos can do as such with the timer on. one step further could be an option to turn off the denizen sidequests altogether to relieve the collect-it-all pressure from those who just want to take advantage of the speed afforded by penny's moveset and the levels. but then again, the game could stand to have more customization and accessibility options in general.