This goofy platformer combines fast gameplay and simple puzzles, and is a real blast to play.
+ There's been a resurgence of 2D platformers recently, which unfortunately means that it became harder to stick out and be unique when making one. While this game isn't the best of what's available it still manages to introduce a few neat ideas and still has enough to keep you interested through the game.
First of all, when you play Clyde you of course have you standard jump. You also have a double jump ability which automatically makes things more interesting and exciting in a platformer. I love double-jumping. But it's not just the fact that they include the double jump, but the running and the jumping feel very natural and fluid, and the speed at which Clyde moves on the ground and in air feels very good. This isn't something that is always present in 2D platformers and does take some tweaking to get just right, so I was glad about that.
You also have a standard attack you can do which usually involves some karate noises and chopping actions. There are really just one kind of enemy, which is a security robot. Whenever you get near it spawns exploding chickens. The depth of the combat pretty much only involves spamming this attack key for a few seconds so that the robot is destroyed. There are gene collectibles in the level which give you a super attack once you get enough of them. This is a one-hit kill and can come in handy for destroying things fast and saving your health.
The one big selling point of this game, however, is the ability to clone your character. And this takes two forms. First of all you will encounter multiple copies of Clyde throughout the level. You can easily switch between characters by pressing the designated button, which then transports you out of his body, and you can hover around the map and select another Clyde to control. It doesn't take long before you learn how to do this and switching between Clydes soon becomes a rapid task. These multiple Clydes are necessary in order for you to press multiple switches, open multiple doors, and ultimately make your way to the end of the map. Then you have the option of just finishing the map once you reach the end, or going back and maneuvering all the Clyde clones into vents which allows them to escape. There are a set number of Clydes per level, so it's easy to keep track if you've led them all to safety.
The other form of cloning allows you to mix DNA with another object from the world. This includes sheep, chickens, frogs, TNT barrels, rocks, and monkeys. You can only mutate on specific mutation platforms, and you have to place a valid object on the other end. But once you do mutate you gain some significant abilities determined by the object you mutated with. For example, sheep allow you to move faster, chickens let you fly, frogs let you swim under water, TNT barrels let you explode stones, and monkeys allow you to climb on certain ceilings. Again these specific mutations are required to progress through the levels.
Overall I had a lot of fun playing the game. The gameplay speed is generally fast which is a good thing. And the puzzles add some problem solving into the mix too. Once I finished, however, I felt like the puzzles could have been more challenging or the levels could have been harder somehow. The game is fun but it may be a little too easy. Perhaps an increase in difficulty would have made things more interesting and challenging, and increased its lasting appeal.
Story/Presentation: 3.5/5
+ The story is barely there but it's just enough to get a sense of why everything is happening. You get a short cartoon at the start of the game which explains Clyde's situation, and then a short panel at the end when you finish all the levels. In between there really isn't any plot line or story arc, it's just a beginning and an end.
Still, there are instructional panels through the world which help guide you. These are written by a Clyde clone and are often humorous and light-hearted. It blends real well with the goofy nature of the game and it is able to convey some personality and character with just a sentence or two, which is a fair accomplishment.
Graphics: 4/5
+ Everything looks really good for this type of game. The world and characters are modeled in 3D and have a cel shading border around them to make them look like cartoons. The animations look smooth and the colors are interesting, too. The only short coming I might list is that there aren't really many options for graphic customization. The resolution in the configuration only lists a few low resolutions. You CAN customize to a widescreen display but it involves editing some files on your computer, which a lot of people might miss. So it would have been nice to have more options in that regard.
Value: 4/5
+ To just run through the game it can probably last you about 4 hours. But each level has other goals besides beating it including Killer Kenn action figure collectibles, rescuing all the cloned Clydes, and completing the level under a par time. There are only 24 levels so going back and getting everything is not that much of a burden and not really that much of a hassle. It actually makes things a little more fun and adds to the game. There are also 10 additional challenge levels which aren't really much harder than the other levels, but are unique.
So if you play through everything, get all the level objectives, and unlock all the achievements then this game can last a little over 6 hours. And for the price of $5 I thought it was worth it. I had a lot of fun playing it and the time spent versus the amount I paid seemed like a great pair. If you like small little platformers then you might want to check this out because it surprised me with how much I enjoyed it.