A great little platform puzzler that shouldn't be missed.
And that does a very good job at describing the game. If you take a look at the screenshots, it is very retro looking, not a whole lot to it. Very basic stuff. But in the end, this game is almost like crack. Normally, when I play through a trial version of a game, even if I LIKE the game, the first time I play it I don't make it through until it kicks me out. Most of the time I quit and move on to something else. This game and Bricks4Ever are the ONLY two games I've played through the first time until the time ran out. And for the record, when I do my "trial game impressions", yes I do play through it a second or third time until it kicks me out just in case I miss something cool the first time. Or if it sucks the first time I play it, I give it another chance just in case I miss something that could make it better.
Graphically, it is VERY obvious there is a retro look going here. Something else that's obvious is the fact that this game was clearly made with the Nintendo DS dual screens in mind. The graphics are bright, colorful. Have lots of personality. And in this writer's hunble opinion Johnny Platform himself looks pretty damn cool with the stick arms and legs and stupid lookin' sock hat kinda thing. The enemies themselves have a very similar look to them, and have a surprising amount of detail hiding in their simplicity. The animation is actually pretty good for what it is. The sound is very basic stuff. You get the Mario Bros-esqe sound when you jump, 8 bit sounding explosions when you jump on an enemy. Slurping sounds when y ou pick up coffee in the game. And a few little voice samples from Johnny himself when he beats a level or dies or something. The music is a similar 8 bit style and fits the game perfectly. I never wanna turn the volume down when I play it just because it reminds me of the days of the original Nintendo and the Sega Master System.
The gameplay is what really sets this game apart. The enemies in the game don't really pose much of a threat so much as they're part of the puzzle of the level. All the levels in the game (I believe there are 55 of them) are ALL done on this single screen you see in the screenshots. And your goal is to somehow destroy all the enemies and reach the exit. Famously with games like this, this is a lot easier than it seems. I managed to BREEZE through the first half of this game with almost no problems, having fun all the way through. Then I started getting stuck, and I think right now I'm stuck on level 35 or 36 … wanting to try everything possible before I just give up and hit up Youtube for a solution or something. And a lot of the puzzles are things, once you finally figure them out you think to yourself "Duh, that was so obvious!" The gameplay is what sets this game apart from a lot of the other ones in Xbox Live's Indie Games section.
Control is a big part of a game like this, and happily the game controls flawlessly. Even with the analog stick, which has always been an awkward thing for me with platformers. But I've had no problems with anything regarding the controls. And there isn't a whole lot to them. You move around, jump with the A button, and if you want to restart the level you hold down the B button. That's it.
I HATE most puzzle games like this, but this really hit home with me. It's a lot of fun, you can spend 10 minutes with it or spend God only knows how long with it and it never gets old. Get in the marketplace, download the trial for this and see what I mean. You'll probably find yourself wondering if you have the 80 points sitting around in your account to snag this with.