Recent reviews by The Animated Guy

Been playing this game for over 10 hours now and have only played about 10 games - most of which are "early" titles in the game's chronological order. I haven't even played the longer, more interesting titles that UFO 50 has to offer, yet I'm already having this much fun?? I can see this being a game that I play for well over a hundred hours. There's so much variety, with excellent visuals and music, and even the weaker games are at least interesting thanks to UFO 50's faux-history. This truly is a game greater than the sum of its parts with how everything ties together in such a smart way. And these are things I've picked up on just from thoroughly playing 10 of these. I can't wait to see what other surprises this game has packed into the other 40!

You have no idea how much I love games where you can play as Little Guys™. Even still, I loved this game more than I could have ever anticipated. The highest praise I can give Garbanzo Quest is that it feels like an inspired spiritual successor to Super Mario World - one that manages to have enough of its own identity thanks to extra secrets, a variety of fun power-ups that you can swap between, three different playable characters (as well as customization options), and a unique blend of platforming & bullet hell gameplay. The gameplay loop never once feels stale thanks to its inventive level design throughout the entire campaign. They're constantly adding new mechanics and remixing ones you've already learned. It also has a very quirky and irreverent sense of humor which made me laugh out loud many a time.

At the time of typing this review I've spent 10 hours with the game, saved every friend, and just beat the main campaign. But believe me when I say this is one game I'll keep playing to 100%. It's one of my favorite non-metroidvania platformers in years. Do yourself a favor and pick up Garbanzo Quest!

So glad I read a recent post on r/metroidvania that recommended this! I love metroidvanias and I love autumn, so this was right up my alley. Very short, but for its price it's very much worth it. The boss fights are all pretty simplistic and generic but I enjoyed everything else about it. The main upgrade of the game, the pitchfork, is very unique and the game uses it well. I also really love the main forest area with the leaves falling and the pretty melody. This was a wonderful way to ring in the autumn season! Easily one of the best microvanias I've ever played.

Despite how long I had been anticipating this one, You Are Peter Shorts took a while to win me over. I was immediately put off by the very floaty/slippery character movement, and a few rooms that felt unfair in their design (all involving insta-kill spikes). Those two things alone almost caused me to abandon this altogether despite being a smaller metroidvania. I am very glad that I stuck with it!

While the game is a metroidvania, it’s just as much a platform fighter in the style of Super Smash Bros. Each Peter has a grab, a block, a charge move, aerial attacks, and more. So much work went into its simple-yet-noteworthy combat system, there’s even a fully-fledged Smash Bros side mode that’s quite fun. I just wonder if the controls would feel more satisfying if this weren't part platform fighter. Peter Shorts himself just isn’t quite as satisfying to control as characters from other Ondy Dev games (Tres-Bashers and Binky’s Trash Service, particularly). But the more Peters you unlock, the easier it is to traverse the facility and get through the more challenging platforming sections. This truly is a game that gets better the further you go. I would highly recommend getting Air Peter in the garden zone as fast as you possibly can. That was a game changer for me. The final sequences of bosses, as well as the climactic escape, is one of the more memorable gaming experiences that I've had all year. Such a wonderfully over-the-top finale to a wonderfully silly game. You Are Peter Shorts is far from perfect - but it's fun enough, and packed with enough humor and personality, that it's absolutely worth playing to the end.

I will never pass up on an opportunity to revisit the wonderfully dumb and endearing characters of Homestar Runner. This point-and-click game was absolutely worth the three hours of gameplay I got out of it thanks to how much it made me laugh. I’m glad I waited to buy this until now, as the recently-added bonus episode definitely added some value. Would highly recommend to any Homestar fan, or fans of comedic point-and-click games. This made me smile more than most games I’ve played this year!

Elephantasy Flipside has so many things that I love in a video game: atmospheric exploration, colorful retro graphics, isometric platforming, fun & quirky character design, and tons of secrets to explore! I’ve largely had a great time with this. For my first 15 hours of gameplay, this was well on its way to becoming one of my favorite games of all time. It’s SO specific to my tastes that it almost feels as if it were made just for me. But as fun as this game is to explore, there are certain rooms - some crucial to completing the game - that are so insanely hidden that it starts to feel more punishing than rewarding after a while.

First, some positives:
What’s unique about this metroidvania is that - just like its predecessor - all power-ups are available very early on, and you can switch between any that you’d like. The more lost souls you recover throughout the underworld? The more power-ups you’re able to carry at once. So after you rescue your first soul, suddenly you’re able to access areas that require combinations of two specific power-ups. I’ve never played another MV that gates off areas of the map in this way. Also, many of the power-ups here feel unique and inspired - and most have more than just one function! The game feels so fresh and innovative in this way. The characters are all cute & quirky in a way that never feels excessive or annoying. And the music, while nothing incredible, is at least a couple steps above the first Elephantasy game. It really is a wonderful, colorful world that’s so fun to explore…up until a certain point.

What drags this down from perfection is that some of the game’s lost souls are hidden in such obtuse ways that most players will give up in frustration before they can ever reach one of the game’s 4 endings. Speaking of endings, the final level of the game (most of the game is open but there IS a final level) involves platforming so janky that it’s bound to frustrate even the more determined players who managed to get that far. Then the final boss makes for an even bigger spike in difficulty, and it all just feels more cruel than fair. Similar to Cave Story, if you want access to the best ending, looking up online help is practically essential. I would say Cave Story is a little more consistently designed than this game, though.

Let’s be clear, though: I still love this. Perhaps with time, now that I know the ins and outs of the game’s secrets, I’ll come to forgive its flaws and regard it as an all-time favorite. It’s one of the most unique games I’ve ever played and I can see myself revisiting it in the future to attempt a perfect run. I’m so glad I discovered it, and if anything I’ve described sounds remotely intriguing to you? Absolutely check it out. It’s a surprisingly huge game that’s more than worth the $10 price tag.

Beautiful artwork and some nice environmental puzzle-solving partially make up for very basic platforming and a half-baked story. The game took me about 6 hours to complete, which honestly felt perfect as far as its gameplay goes. If it were any longer I feel like this one would overstay its welcome. Very much feels like an indie game meant with kids in mind, though the season-shifting mechanic does keep things interesting and pleasant to look at.

Another highlight of the game is the string quartet-based soundtrack. Incredibly fitting and very beautiful, though I really wish certain tracks would loop. Often times the game will play a track just once and then never again - even if you exit the game and come back. If you’ve got a soundtrack this good, why wouldn’t you feature it more prominently?

The game isn't as polished or fun to explore as something like Ori, and the writing and voice acting isn't quite as strong as The Last Campfire, but I still had a nice time with this cozy little game. It was clearly made with lots of love and passion. If you've got kids, or you're a kid at heart, grab some warm cider and give this one a try.

Maaaan I really wanted to like this one. I love Kero Blaster, and I even got a little Toby Fox from some of the music and quirky character designs here. I love platformers where you can play as multiple characters, and each character here definitely feels distinct. Unfortunately the game is so unbalanced, particularly with the boss fights, that it dampens almost everything good that's here. Some boss fights become either impossible or near-impossible to beat if you get hit and lose your "level 3" power-up status. With games like Cave Story, most bosses will dispense xp pellets as you fight them, giving you a chance to power back up even after taking hits. But here? If you get hit once, you're as good as dead. Especially with certain character-boss fight combinations, like fighting the first boss with Piggy. There was also one attempt with the first desert fight, where the boss abandoned the battle halfway through, yet the health bar and music remained. There's clearly heart and personality within this game, but until it becomes more balanced, I can't recommend this one at all.

A nice, small-scale metroidvania that can easily be completed within 5 hours. No combat, with the exception of a few rather simple boss fights. With no background art, tinny diegetic music coming from a radio that you carry around, and very little environmental sound design, the game isn't quite as atmospheric as it wants to be. Sparse music & sound arrangement CAN make for an atmospheric game, but I don't think Elephantasy's execution of that is quite as strong as games like Lizard (NES) or A Short Hike.

However, I recommend this game for two reasons: it's got charm in spades. The NPCs you come across are all super quaint, with dialogue that's equally so. The game is chill enough that it could very well fall under the "cozy" category - something quite rare for a metroidvania. The other thing that makes this game stand out is something I've never quite seen in this genre before: all the abilities you need to traverse the map are right there from the beginning...but you start by only being able to carry one. The more gems you collect, the more abilities you're able to wield. This forces you to problem-solve in a way that you ordinarily wouldn't in a metroidvania, and I thought that was really neat. Also, for how small the game is, the level design is quite solid and the map was fun to explore. It may not be up there in the best metroidvanias I've ever played, but it does just enough to warrant a full play through.

Quality puzzle game! It’s a shame it’s not more widely available on other platforms. The core gameplay is fun - you’re a little guy with a star blaster, running atop falling blocks, with a row of spikes across the floor at the very bottom. Avoid the spikes and other traps while getting big block combos. It’s nothing too revolutionary, but it’s fresh enough that I’ve kept coming back to it for short bursts of play. There’s also side challenge levels that you unlock as you go along, which I always appreciate in a puzzle game. Though some of them are a little too challenging, relying on memorization of where the hazards will fall. I beat them all, but I imagine many players won't have the patience for it (and I don't blame them).

If you love block-falling puzzle games, definitely check this one out!