Preview of tomorrow's demo is up on gamecentral:
metro.co.uk
Sounds decent but not spectacular. Some tidbits:
To be honest we weren't really clear what Balan Wonderworld was when it was first announced, but having been given advance access to the demo, which will be released publicly on Thursday, January 28, we have a clearer grasp of what it's all about. Balan Wonderworld is an old school 3D platformer and surprisingly reminiscent of Billy Hatcher And The Giant Egg, our favourite of Naka's post-Sonic titles, in terms of its simple platforming and reliance on a single, entertaining gimmick.
Even when the statutes are involved though the platforming is very basic and the controls rather flat, to the point where it's obvious this would never keep anyone's interest as a straight platformer like Super Mario Odyssey. Luckily it doesn't have to though as the big gimmick is a selection of more than 80 different costumes, which you wear like something out of Fall Guys which all confer very different abilities. The Tasmanian Devil style Toranado Wolf is the first you pick up, which has a spin attack that can deflect tornadoes used by enemies. After that is the kangaroo-like Jumping Jack which allows you to jump further and the Elastiplant which lets you stretch upwards, as if on stilts.
The ingredients are all here for a fun, retro style 3D platformer, the sort of thing you could imagine appearing on the GameCube and nobody but you ever seeming to know about it. We're sure Square Enix are hoping for more than that but the game seems a hard sell for anyone that's not already a fan of the genre, with very low-tech visuals, an unhelpful camera, and limp combat. Although the local co-op is certainly a welcome option. There is still a charm to Balan Wonderworld – 3D platformers are rare enough that any new one is automatically of interest – but despite the generous length of the demo there's nothing much to get your teeth into and in gameplay terms it all seems a lot plainer and less exciting than the ideas underpinning it. Hopefully the final game will close that gap but at the very least it's definitely better than the last several 3D Sonic games.
Balan Wonderworld hands-on preview – the shadow of Sonic the Hedgehog
The creators of Sonic The Hedgehog and Nights Into Dreams create a brand new franchise and GameCentral has had early access to the demo.
metro.co.uk
Sounds decent but not spectacular. Some tidbits:
To be honest we weren't really clear what Balan Wonderworld was when it was first announced, but having been given advance access to the demo, which will be released publicly on Thursday, January 28, we have a clearer grasp of what it's all about. Balan Wonderworld is an old school 3D platformer and surprisingly reminiscent of Billy Hatcher And The Giant Egg, our favourite of Naka's post-Sonic titles, in terms of its simple platforming and reliance on a single, entertaining gimmick.
Even when the statutes are involved though the platforming is very basic and the controls rather flat, to the point where it's obvious this would never keep anyone's interest as a straight platformer like Super Mario Odyssey. Luckily it doesn't have to though as the big gimmick is a selection of more than 80 different costumes, which you wear like something out of Fall Guys which all confer very different abilities. The Tasmanian Devil style Toranado Wolf is the first you pick up, which has a spin attack that can deflect tornadoes used by enemies. After that is the kangaroo-like Jumping Jack which allows you to jump further and the Elastiplant which lets you stretch upwards, as if on stilts.
The ingredients are all here for a fun, retro style 3D platformer, the sort of thing you could imagine appearing on the GameCube and nobody but you ever seeming to know about it. We're sure Square Enix are hoping for more than that but the game seems a hard sell for anyone that's not already a fan of the genre, with very low-tech visuals, an unhelpful camera, and limp combat. Although the local co-op is certainly a welcome option. There is still a charm to Balan Wonderworld – 3D platformers are rare enough that any new one is automatically of interest – but despite the generous length of the demo there's nothing much to get your teeth into and in gameplay terms it all seems a lot plainer and less exciting than the ideas underpinning it. Hopefully the final game will close that gap but at the very least it's definitely better than the last several 3D Sonic games.
