Recent reviews by Kai

Battletoads 2020 is the long awaited return of the classic NES beat em up franchise that since day one has left people divided. From my personal point of view and as someone that's played every game in the franchise - from the original NES game to the 1994 arcade title - I find myself on the positive side of things.


I feel the need to clarify my opinion due to the mixed reception it has received from fans and because this is naturally a review.

The first thing I want to cover is the art style, as from the get go this was the most negatively received aspect to the game that when we first saw our gameplay footage, put me off as well. However as I kept playing the game I found that the designs for the Toads and Dark Queen started to grow on me and helped heighten the comedy - it's definitely helped by the fact that the actual in game animations are high quality hand drawn that look both full of life and over the top which while different does manage to stay true to the cartoony nature the original games had. Examples would include the characters having a jaw dropping expression when going up against bosses, sadly the fmv cutscenes dont do a good job highlighting how gorgeous these in game visuals are as they feel more stilted and tweened, easily comparible to a cheap flash animated show you'd catch on TV. What saves these sequences however is the writing, as while the animation doesnt live up to the task, the game's comedy is spot on and throughout the experience I found myself laughing at how much the game was delving into the madness brought upon by the world it created.

While some may argue that the charm to the original was the fact it took itself seriously while churning out ridiculous concepts and having appalling dialogue (check all the Dark Queen's taunts in every single one of the original titles) , I say the 2020 game while it knows its ridiculous, it too also takes its humor seriously as if what's going is really important to the cast which often leads to the joke hitting harder - an example that comes to mind is how Pimple has an arc about giving up violence, which is played for laughs but because the character takes it so seriously, it winds up becoming hilarious when he eventually loses his cool and we're welcomed with a surprisingly fun minigame.

That brings up the gameplay, Battletoads does what its NES counterpart did, in that while you did have a beat 'em up, it was jumbled in with a ton of different sections - the infamous turbo tunnel, platforming, worm riding and even space shooting elements. I personally never liked the jumbled mess that is the original NES game + the SNES title as while we had those different sections, the general gameplay and control would maintain that of the beat 'em up, meaning that when it came to say platforming intensive sequences (such as the worm ride and the ice level after turbo tunnel) the game would fall apart as the Toads default controls were always on the more slippery side. This is a detriment when a game suddenly wants to throw in platformer elements and demands that you do very precise movements. While the 2020 title does mix mash different genres in a similar manner the originals did, it does it far better as with each segment the controls do change to match the different genre designs.

While I do prefer my games to have a proper focus on what type of gameplay/genre it is, Battletoads 2020 does pull it off really well for the most part. The 2020 game also has its "definitive hard moment", which comes in the form of a bullet hell shooter sequence that arrives in the penultimate act - this will really test your patience as it's the one time in the game where the difficulty matches the originals, however unlike the originals it feels as if my skills are properly being tested rather than just throwing them in my face and the bullet hell sequences do make a comeback as opposed to being once off frustrating challenges that just disappear after one level never to be seen again.

For the most part the minigames are also enjoyable, however there are two in particular that really wore out their welcome quickly , one being the Olympic styled one where it would jump from one task to another, whether it's shooting an arrow into an object, jumping high in the air to pose - which really drags out and doesnt feel like it gives you the proper amount of time to do the proper pose. The other mini game is the final title that wraps up the bullet hell act where you need to press buttons in the proper sequence to repair the spaceship. As with the olympic section it feels like there isn't a proper amount of time to both register what the correct symbols are you need to configure (as they change on each round) and it drags on, a weirdly appropriate ending to the 3rd act of the game as a whole due to how long it can feel due to the difficulty , even on tadpole - for the record, I played the game on the normal difficulty and only revisted some areas on tadpole.

With the beat em up aspect of the game, it feels fast and satisfying, allowing for the action to flow nicely and keep the adrenaline going as you rack up the combos, another new aspect the game introduces not seen in previous games is charging up an attack to deal serious damage to stronger enemies and one hit kill weaker ones. In the beat em up aspect it lives up to what the arcade game put forth and adds some more to it, once again leaving Battlemaniacs in the dust with its sluggish movements and beat em up gameplay - a concern I had when I saw the initial gameplay reveal and was glad to see rectified upon release.

There is a platformer section that pops up in the 3rd act of the game that spaces out the bullet hell sequences where you control Pimple as he solves puzzles to find enlightment at the top of a mountain - these puzzles are nicely done and at points do require a bit of thinking to get past and provide a good breather from the aforementioned bullet hell moments and helps set up for the penultimate section where you control the Dark Queen who's outrunning stomach acid - If those sentences didnt prove my earlier point about how crazy things can get then nothing will (should I mention the bit where you use an ambassador's body as a bodyboard?).

In another improvement over both the NES game and Battlemaniacs, the turbo bikes make a return and like the Double Dragon crossover, actually manage to not be a headache this time around - in a weird change of events they actually prove to be the highlight of the game with their fast paced obstacle dodging gameplay. As far as the series is concerned, this is the best the turbo tunnel levels have ever been.

In conclusion, Battletoads 2020 is a fun romp that manages to keep itself from ever feeling like a repetive or mundane beat 'em up. While the variety may feel a bit much at times (as the game at times can feel overstuffed with so many other random elements, again a common problem that plagued both the NES game and Battlemaniacs) they never turn out to be a detriment to the overall experience, leaving me wanting to continue and work towards finishing it up.


I hope we do get another sequel that can ideally streamline a few things. Of the non beat em up section I would keep in the mob chase, the turbo bikes and platforming sections as those were the best minigame additions included that added more to the typical beat 'em up experience.

With good comedic writing to boot, I find myself recommending the title to people that want to have a fun crazy time that can only really be expected from the Battletoads series. It's also the perfect introduction to anyone that wants to play these games, despite in my personal opinion, merely being the second best in the franchise - but when you're number 2 to a really great, underrated arcade beat em up, that itself is a good honor, especially for a comeback.

Released in 2005, Bone: Escape from Boneville is both an adaption of the first issue of Jeff Smith’s classic comic book series but also Telltale’s first point-and-click adventure game.



Unfortunately Telltale’s first leap into the adventure game genre proves to be quite mediocre as the game suffers from a few flaws that really hold it back and make it hard to recommend to anyone who isn’t a fan of the comics.


Pros:

- The characters are likeable and the game does present an interesting lore that makes me want to check out the comics
- The game has a good sense of humour
- Knows how to create a mysterious atmosphere when needed for the occasion

Cons:

- The game is too short clocking in at about an hour, this is understandable with most Telltale titles as they’re generally episodic, however this one wasn’t and instead was released as a standalone title, not part of a seasonal pack such as their later releases
- The audio mixing is awful, sometimes the music will overshadow the characters’ dialogues
- Help mode is overbearing to a point where it will just outright state the answer to a puzzle



Bone: Out From Boneville

[Point-and-Click Adventure] [Comedy] [Fantasy] [Easy]

The game is all about the Bone cousins as they’re chased out of their hometown, along their way discover the mystical thorn valley which holds many secrets and monsters for our heroes to handle.


While the characters are likeable, the game does fall flat with how simple the puzzles can be, with one in particular being especially frustrating – not helped by the fact that this puzzle, which requires you to play hide-and-seek with the Possum kids twice, both times ruining the game’s general pacing and artificially extending the playthrough time.

As noted before, yes the game is very short and can be beaten within 2 hours, especially since there’s absolutely no challenge at all. The puzzles are easy with a hint box that will spell everything out to you if selected enough times – this ruins any challenge the game had going for it and ruins one of the key fundamentals established from within this particular genre as point and click games need to have some reasonably tricky puzzles to test the player regardless of age.

From a visual standpoint, yes the game has aged and the lower budget is quite noticeable (e.g. Backgrounds are hand painted instead of 3D models and don’t mix with the foreground that well) but the simple style does a good job capturing the simple look of the comics that’s pleasing to the eyes.

In short, while a fun little distraction, I can’t really bring myself to recommend this game to others due to its short comings such as being too short and nothing really feeling properly fleshed out. With that said, you’re probably better off checking out the comics instead

5.5/10



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