| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| Wii | 7.40 |
| Overall | 7.40 |
|
Klonoa is a remake of the PS1 title for the Wii. As far as I know nothing but the graphics and voice acting has changed (an added bonus level as well I believe). Klonoa is a throwback to the old school 2D platformers but with a 3D twist. The game is all in a 2D plane but that plane twists and turns in and out of the screen, it makes for a great visual style and gives levels a bit of added depth. Like platformers of old the game is short, 12 stages is all you have here, luckily they are all pretty long levels. All the best platformers have some sort of hook or unique element to them and Klonoa is no different. The key to the game is using the enemies to attack and to jump higher. Klonoa can grab any enemy (that isn't shielded) and once grabbed you can throw the enemy at others or use it as a bounce pad to perform a double jump. This simple mechanic makes the game stand out as nearly every obstacle uses the enemies in some way. It starts off simple with basic double jumps you must perform but quickly gets more inventive where you need to figure out how to get an enemy to hit a switch or perform multiple in air grab and jumps. Each stage is littered with green gems to collect and hidden objects to find. These are not hidden all that well, as long as you pay attention you can find all the hidden objects on your first play through the level. In fact most are found easily, its trying to get them that is the challenge. Again you will need to use enemies in clever ways to reach some of these objects. The game is clearly for kids so it never reaches a point where it is difficult. The last few stages are far more platform heavy and have more complex puzzles that the start but it shouldn't give anyone problems. It's an enjoyable experience even though its easy. If you find all hidden objects you unlock this bonus stage which is for advanced players and wow, I kind of wish more of the game was like this. The level is brutal as it has bottomless pits everywhere and it requires you to do an aerial juggling act to get by. Stages are varied enough with some offering a kind of mini game slide or other events that break up the usual action. Some levels offer multiple paths, toward the end they almost become maze like but it's never too complicated. Boss fights are of the usual pattern boss variety, of course you must use enemies to defeat them. Often times the boss will be in a plane facing into the screen so you must grab enemies and chuck them into the background to hit them. Many boss arena battles take place in a circular track, if you played Sonic Rush its the same kind of thing. Well done boss fights, again not that hard, I think you can see a pattern here. Klonoa is one of those platformers that think they have an interesting story to tell so there are plenty of cutscenes. The voice acting is of the over exaggeration kind, you know the stuff Sega would normal do. The story is aimed at children but half way through all of a sudden Klonoa's grandfather gets murdered and there is this death scene that seems so out of place. The ending is not a fairy tale ending either, it has a sort of Matrix like twist to it all. Graphically it looks beautiful on the Wii. Silky smooth frame rate with luscious colors all over. It's exactly what a platformer should look like; vibrant, colorful. The music is fine, I don't particularly remember any of the songs. It's a rather short game, I finished it and found all hidden objects in 5 hours. You unlock a few things like mirror mode or time attack for the bosses but the time attack has no goals, it simply keeps track of your time. If you enjoy 16-bit era platformers you will enjoy Klonoa. It is a solid platformer through and through which sadly keeps everything rather simple. |
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Posted by Dvader Mon, 16 Aug 2010 18:44:57
Sun, 22 Aug 2010 02:01:09
I told you about that ending on the podcast. So random, it's awesome.
Sun, 22 Aug 2010 02:09:18
Ah that is right, well you were right.
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