It's like if Banjo-Tooie's level structure was actually good and sane. Does the thing that game does where a level is like one big puzzle with multiple smaller ones to solve within it, but its not designed maliciously. Appreciate the way it really doesn't play like what has been standardized as the "good 3d platformer moveset", but still feels really good to nail. Has fall damage because its not cowardly. In general it feels like what Rare was going for with its harder platformer moments like Rusty Bucket Bay or all of Conker's Bad Fur Day but just not nearly as mean, but mean enough to be satisfying to beat. I think a lot of 3D platformer people have turned on Rare's n64 platformers for several reasons, but games like this show that there's still plenty of right lessons to take from those games besides "have a joke about balls" or "have more collectibles than God"

Corn Kidz is an very accurate take N64 platformers (limited experience so laugh at me if wrong), down to the incredibly anger inducing frustration I feel trying to do platforming. It also has plenty of other shit (accurate) that usually makes me groan like timers and aiming timed bombs with no reticule.

On my second session I just got like immediately tired and wanted to get to the end and was met with a boss that I fucked up and died, so I'm sent to the checkpoint which is before some platforming I would really not like to do again to get back to the boss. I just quit right there, I'm an adult and I can stop doing stuff I do like anymore.

Besides my frustrations, I really do enjoy the art style, the main character has such fluid animations it looks so cool. It also has a 2000's Hot Topic Invader Zim vibe that of course I'm rocking with. The girl goat goes hard.

new bar for retro inspired 3d platformers just dropped. corn kidz 64 feels equal parts familiar and fresh. familiarity stems from the low poly graphics and welcome collectathon design and humor reminiscent of rare's best n64 outings. freshness comes from the game's crisp, squishy, and stretchy animations, and an incredible moveset that uses headbutts, dig slams, and wall slides to great effect.

while i wish the game was like twice as long, the content we have is top tier for the genre. my only other nitpick is there are too many random invisible walls blocking out-of-the-box puzzle solutions.

play corn kidz

so fucking blessed to be living in the golden age of 3d platfomers. was gonna say golden age of indie 3d platformers but tbh no reason to section them off, its not like theyre a AAA genre for anyone other then nintendo anymore. this one scratched some itches that even a bunch of the others i love havent quite scratched...perhaps one of the most comforting games for me in the comfiest genre for me, despite also being a good deal more difficult and finnicky then many of them. or perhaps its because of that!!! for a 6 hour experience that amounts to a tutorial, one world, and a big final stretch, every single part is mined for as much as it can possibly give in its small size...a reminder of the experience of these older games, which demanded that u cut your own way thru them until u knew them in and out, from your own abilities to the spaces u are asked to traverse to the quest threads you follow to promised rewards. what begins in overwhelm is slowly chipped away into total intimacy, and surprises under the hood of every aspect...a seemingly complicated and janky moveset turns out to be both simple and extremely versitile, a seemingly chaotic and dense world turns out to be perfectly compact with no uninteresting space, big intimidating platforming challenges turn out to just be a few more persistent attempts away from delicious satisfaction.

two random notes: (1) this rly brings back the lost art of Needing To Orient Your Movement In Relation To An Unideal Camera Angle. i think a lot of ppl have it in their heads that this is """bad game design""" because its a barrier to instant satisfaction, and its understandably perfectly avoidable in a dual stick world. corn kidz mixes dual sticks with weird n64 type buttons for specific camera reorientations (like zoomouts and top down views) and occasional semi-fixed angles, or just places where there Isnt rly an ideal angle. this game rly affirms to me that the skill of orientation is as valid as any, it was definitely one that you Needed to develop playing n64 platformers, so admittedly i had a head start. they know their audience! ppl should be more willing to accept "awkwardness" before we optimize and overpolish the entire character of Play Experience out of video games. (2) your hooves make clopping sounds. perfect video game

One of the most successful late 90's style collectathon platformers out there. We're entering a bit of a low poly renaissance. Which is exciting, as for years I lamented the fact that only Atari tier pixel art was ripe for the indie train. There's a genuine art to low poly stuff and it's GREAT to see it boom. But, just like the pixel art games, I'm finding it's quite rare to find something that truly feels ripped from the era.

Corn Kidz to me does a great job maintaining the simplicity AND the depth of the classics like Banjo-Kazooie. It's a truly hard mix to find. These games were rarely ever about movement, but movement and challenging level design are an easy way to make a fun platformer. For it to truly feel of the DK64 era, it needs to be a lot more grounded than one would imagine of a stylized cartoony platformer. The challenge then, is making a world that's fun to explore without it being filled with Celeste-type level design. Forcing an almost point and click puzzler type of game design in a way. MAJOR props to this team for sticking the landing on that hyper specific, hard to explain niche I'm personally looking for, while also delivering some of the most satisfying 3D platforming I've experienced.

Only real downside I have is that I wasn't expecting the one level to be...the one level. At some point it was like Geez this level may be a bit much until I realized oh this level is 80% of the game. The meat of the game being one level does mean the stage is FULLY realized and densely designed. This isn't a game length complaint. Though it's one element that does leave the classics its inspired from still at the top for me. Makes finding the last few collectibles a bit much as you feel you've thoroughly combed the level 10 times over. I'd LOVE for this game to have stages of this quality but shrunk into 9 smaller levels + hub world. There IS more outside of the level, and it's all a joy. From the tutorial stage, to very esoterically hidden bits, to end game unlockables. The Tower of Anxiety is such an inherently satisfying dedicated platforming section. I'm begging for more towers to climb in 3D platformers, I want to feel the tension of falling down grow as I climb higher and higher.

Art style and ost is a delight as well. Tho the main level being so large, the one song that plays for most of it gets just a tad tiresome. I'm very picky with my retro revivals, I hyper-fixate on everything they omit that was accomplished over 20 years ago. So for one to get past me with flying colors is a joy.

You say 6-8 hours for the average person playin this game
well *i* say im anything but average....
i SUCK AT THIS GAME! AND THATS WHY I HAVE 33 HOURS IN IT! BUT I ALSO HAVE 33 HOURS IN IT BECAUSE IT JUST KEPT HAVIN SHIT I LOVE FINDIN !!!!
i love this game but ill crack down on why

I love this game's art style! I heard somebody actually compare it to invader zim and at the time I didn't really See any jhonen vasquez in this game but as I got a little further n thought a bit more about it... it totally does have that influence and i think that helped me piece together why i like it so much
THOUGH i think the art direction isnt TOOOOOTALLY paying homage to Jhonen and that the dev managed to give it its own identity going on
but I can absolutely imagine Seve with Richard Horvitz' voice.. but for Alexis im not sure if i imagine moreof a Mabel Gravity Falls voice or a more jovial Mandy from Billy And Mandy going on
It's actually really funny how this has early 00s cartoon inspiration when this is also directly inspired by n64 graphic visuals and 3d platformer feel(ala your mario 64 or banjo kazooie type experience but not as long or with as much active level booty fanfare)...despite both of those things HARDLY havin any overlap yk wht im sayin? but enough abt the art, hows the G A M E?

well the kit you have going on with Seve is rlly cool! I love how heavy he feels while also having a little bit of endlag slip going on to really give you those "OH SHIT!" moments when youre tryin to be precise, and precise is the name of the game because this game will totally not baby you with some jumps
you get everything you could need right at the start

save for another ability youll get later on thatll open more options and opportunities required to beat the game and do some junk on the way there

the sound design SHOULD get annoying after a bit, flailing around and all the cartoon crashes and thunks to do things.. but it rly doesnt LMAO infact it became satisfying just smacking seve's head into shit just to hear the noise
i got so use to this infact, i would fuckup even basic platforming moments later on because id be doing the air headbutt so often i forgot i could just JUMP NORMALLY LIKE A NORMAL GOAT THING

but in spite of my hubris, i! thanks to the encouragement of my girl and also others and also rummaging through steam help threads... did it! i beat it and do you wanna know somethin? i cant blame you for this not being your thing if it doesnt sound like it!
I mean it's a cheap game! only runnin for like 7 bucks to maybe 8 or 9 depending on where you live!..

But a weighty non-overpowered platforming main character in a platformer thts gonna require some precision, interacting with setpieces in ways not spelled out to you, figuring out a lot of things not spelled out to you despite hints being up and around through NPCs(watch for things like tiles offcolor or your groundpound or even usin the camera buttons to get a good scope on shit!).. its not a For Everyone thing even though I totally think its so rewarding getting good at it that the difficulty is really just bent around direction and understanding the controls rather than there being superhard bosses going on
though sometimes that walljump or latchin onto somethin will be rlly scary and seem like sometimes it wont work even though its really nice feeling.. i partially blame my own kinda jank xbox controller i did all this with(there's n64 controller support along with other controller support if thats your jam too!, you can play this game with a keyboard as well... if u hate yaself!!!)

but yeah about 3 main areas (technically theres... more!! but-)
i think a sequel would be totally cool, like some people are clappin for, to really write some of the felt wrongs with the game to perfect it

but alsoooooooo likeeeeeeeeeeeee idk i feel like im almost nitpicking with things i dont like about the game the more i rack my head around this you guys, its such a nice time its just a really fun platformer thats gonna be a lil difficult for those that aint all that good at platformers and be rewarding for those that are good at platformers in the way of how much more content you can get for 100%ing or even doing shit real quick
one thing that even gets me about this is it gave me that weird nostalgic frustration i felt as a kid with some games where id be stuck on some shit and get kinda frustrated and think to maybe look it up but im not finding shit, but then i figure it out on my own w/o a guide or nothing and my eyes get all big and sparkly LMAO

if that sounds like itd be your thing then go for it, play seve gets trolled 64

The resurgence of the 3D platformer is upon us, and I'm 100% here for it.

3D platformers are my bread and butter. I've been jonesing for an age just like this reminiscent of the golden years of the genre. If 2D pixel art platformers had their time, 3D platformers required this too. Games like Psuedoregalia, Toree 2, and Super Kiwi 64 have served as sampler platters for this regaling taste of indie platformers. Each game have had their strengths and weaknesses, but all share a single common thread linking them together.

They're too damn short!

Game length isn't necessarily a problem. Short games are worthy experiences on their own, and replay value shines through with smaller sized games. The problem that arises from these games have been that their stay comes and goes far too soon. Like the greedy platforming gobbler I am, I'm always wanting more, unsatisfied with my portions. I'd enjoy my time, but the games would never leave a lasting impression of me because of this.

Corn Kidz 64 is no different in regard to length. With a handful of areas and only 5-6 hours of gameplay, Corn Kidz comes and goes in the blink of an eye.

Yet despite this, Corn Kidz 64 has managed to leave a deeper impression onto me than any of these games.

Part of that has to do with Corn Kidz 64 is emulating. The Rareware 3D platformer is by far my favorite flavor of 3D platformer. Preferences are preferences, after all.

The developer really did their homework here. Splash effects are rendered and animated in the similar splotchy eruption that Conker's Bad Fur Day so distinctively had. Colors are baked into the textures, blending and blurring into each area, reminding me of texture work done in games like Banjo Kazooie or Tooie. Characters contain the cartoony jovial and springy feel that Rare managed to employ so effectively across all their titles. These characters speak with a sharp bite that feels more American than it does British wit, but it's still chalk full of charm.

These worlds consist of dreamscapes concocted by the nacho and soda drinking adolescent that is our main character, each world presenting bizzare and random elements that are fitting with how unfitting this world is. Unlike Psuedoregalia, this dream world has a sense of place and location, which makes navigating around places like Owllohs Hollow easy to follow along. It does suffer from repetition with attempting to reach locations on the map, with no real easy way to retry a jump puzzle, but this is a small flaw. Every element on screen is nearly convincing me I'm staring at a game from an alternate dimension late 90's-early 00's.

This translates to the gameplay as well. While the game doesn't have the level of controls that Psuedoregalia had, Corn Kidz makes up for this with pure game feel. The move set and level of control feels heavily inspired by Banjo Kazooie, but with a fundemental twist. Due to being a goat, your move set revolves around headbutting. This means you can fly forward in the air, butt stomp into the ground, and charge up into the air. These all serve multiple functions within the tool set, such as interacting with screws to activate pieces of the environment or hitting switches, auto locking enemies to charge towards them, and ramming into walls.

That last one might make you cringe a little. A move like that may give the mental image of a move that's a momentum killing killjoy. This may have been be true, if not for Corn Kidz implementing the ability to slide against walls. Nitro Rad compared this wall slide akin to the wall slide found within Megaman X, which is an apt frame of reference, but brings about a skewed image. This wall slide let's you scale walls, but is limited in comparison to Megaman X. You can jump twice upwards, after that, you fall to the floor. This limitation brings about momentous jumping puzzles that revolve around wall jumping that utilizes every other mechanic within the game. This could be an enemy that you ram your head into and can spring yourself against a wall, a ring that propels you forward like a DK barrel.

All of these mechanics work cohesively together in a way that just meshes with me in the right ways. I'm absolutely in love with how this game controls, along with every mechanic found within this game!

But that hunger pane returns, and I crave for more game to sink my teeth into! What's here feels like a proof of concept for something much more grand in scale, and while I'm satisfied enough in comparison to some others within this sampler platter, I want this game to be a full course meal. There's potential for all time favorite platformer found somewhere within here, and I want to just yank out all that potential.

So lend me your ear, indie game developers! Keep making 3D platformers! Keep working on your games! If you don't have enough ideas to make them an 8 hour meal, you don't have to extend it for the sake of length! But PLEASE consider striving for more!

Yeah Idk what you guys saw in this that I couldn't, but I've played many 3D platformers in my time and none were as mixed as Corn Kidz 64, but i'm getting ahead of myself here. Let me explain my entire experience with this game.

To start off, that damn wall jump and wall climb can go fuck itself. That is the most unintuitive unresponsive inconsistent move this goat has. Every time you think you're against the wall, it looks like you weren't lol oh well fall back down 3 floors and try again. I've tried so many times to learn what I did wrong and every time its something different. The fall damage, why in the ever living christ did you think it was a good idea to give this type of precise platforming game fall damage. That's like giving the getting over it dude fall damage. it works with Mario and Banjo because those games don't require you to do pin point precision platforming. This is a different case, and I swear every time you fall in this game there is nothing more infuriating than just being teleported to your save and having to sit through that death animation and pointless game over screen over and over again. When death has no consequence in this game I wonder why there's even a game over screen to begin with. Just play the death animation and teleport me back to the start. It's that easy.

The platforming is difficult. I'm ok with challenging platforming, if your protagonist controls well and isn't fighting me half of the time. I think this game asks too much of the player that progression goes from 0 to 100 really fast. Combined with very poor level gimmicks like those stupid owls that you have to hit into place all the time because their dumbass can't stay in one position. It becomes frustrating so fast. The humor misses the mark a lot and while there maybe a good one or two jokes here it's not enough to make me care about what's happening on screen. I mainly stuck around for as long as I did for the platforming aspect. The platforming can be fun, when you're swinging together move after move seamlessly and you're in a platforming flow state I think that's where this game shines, but whenever I have fun i'm reminded of how annoying it is for the level design to send you back like 3 floors after falling. This game shines the most with its visuals and atmosphere, it has the perfect hazy N64 vibe and I enjoy it a lot. It's definitely one of the two reasons I kept playing at least. The music itself is also just ok, some are fine but there are tracks in here that I don't really find myself caring about all too much.

There's definitely a good foundation for a full game here but what i'm playing feels like a tech demo at most, for 7-8$ you get what you paid for but i've played cheaper games that are more fun than this. Check this one out at your own cost, I didn't like it, but I know a lot of people did.

I wanted to like this one more than I did, but it was still a good enough time. Well, until it stopped being fun near the end. But hey, I enjoyed most of it!

GOOD:

-The world and characters. Really like the style of this game, a lot of fun personality. Especially like the two main character designs. Oh, and the Garbage Grump.

-The music is pretty good! I dunno if I’m gonna be remembering them much now that I’m done, but I was enjoying them while I was playing.

-Well thought out platforming challenges. Whether or not you LIKE them is a different story, but a lot of thought was put into designing them. Definitely a game for fans of hardcore platforming challenges.

STUFF I DIDNT LIKE TOO MUCH:

-Conveyance. Maybe it’s just me, but I felt like I was lost in this game more than once.

-The camera. Boy do I hate this camera. If I’m trying to look around, find where to go, or even do some of the demanding platforming this game asks of you, I don’t want my camera snapping back where it was. Got extremely annoying by the end.

-Some of the later platforming challenges are just not fun. At all. I feel like the later parts of the game knocked this game down a whole star for me.

-The length. So, this is a short game, instead of having multiple worlds, it’s really just a handful. I’m fine with that idea, but you spend the majority of the game in just one of these worlds. A lot. Like, a LONG time. I was sick of this world by the end. I was getting pretty bored with it. On the other hand, I feel like if this game were longer, the problems I have with it would be WAY more annoying. So I dunno, I feel like they don’t really use their time very well. Again, maybe it’s just me.

So yeah. I dunno! I wish I could’ve enjoyed it more, but still a good time.

This game does a great job replicating that old 3D-platformer difficulty, and it ramps up even more by the last stretch. The game is supposed to be 2 hours long (It took me 4 days to beat). Don't expect too much from the story, but you're free to dig around the map for lore.

If you're itching for some challenge- this is it. If you still find it too easy try the mirror dimensions hidden around the map (sick freak) I still recommend it for the experience alone. Its fun and not too hard, and you get to play as a goat too!

" Climb the mountain of pixel perfect precise challenge where you can fall down to the very bottom and lose all your progress (takes 2 hours) "

Me: 😍😍😍😍😍

" Gather all 5 collectibles hidden in this level (takes 15 minutes) "

Me: 😩😩😩😩😩

I love goats; they're such cool animals. I would say goats are the GOAT, but sheep are the actual GOAT if you ask me. But there are a lot of similarities between the two! For instance, did you know they're both part of the Caprini tribe?

This is all relevant because Corn Kidz 64 is all about goats. Well, you're playing as a goat; Seve, the single horned kid! He looks like he lives in a Hot Topic along with his friend Alexis; who also happens to be single horned. I bet they listen to Korn on the daily. I'm sure Issues would be their favourite considering it's the best Korn record.

I think the story has something to do with Seve having reoccurring dreams about nachos, and Alexis trying her best to break him free. I say "I think" because I found the story very confusing to follow. One minute you're in a playground and then fifteen minutes later you're in a hollow full of palindromes and pigs. I suppose the dream theme of the game could explain the lack of cohesion, but I had a difficult time understanding what the hell was going on besides Seve craving nachos.

The writing is incredibly on the nose to the point it may as well replace your nose, but I think it works well for what they were going for. It's dumb and edgy, but I still found myself giggling every now and again. Sometimes stupid, silly humour like this hits the spot. This game also loves its palindromes. And as a connoisseur of wordplay, I'm all for it!

The audiovisuals replicate the era of the N64, and they do a fantastic job at that. Hell, if this was on N64, it would be one of the best looking on the system! The animations utilise plenty of squash and stretch, leaving for super fluid and cartoony movements. The models themselves feature that low poly N64 charm, and the environments manage to look bleak and haunting while also popping with colour. I’m not a huge fan of the N64 soundfont, but even I dig this soundtrack. It consistently and constantly slapped my striped thigh highs off!

I've rambled this long about the vibes of the game without actually touching upon the gameplay. Dear goat, this game is so much fun. Seeing as you play as a goat, climbing and headbutting are the major mechanics of this game. And because of Seve's singular horn, he can use it as a drill of sorts. Later on, he can even burrow into the ground! The mechanics are pushed to their absofruit limits. This game demands precision platforming. This could definitely be a turn off for plenty of people, but I was all for it. The level design was incredibly challenging yet completely satisfying.

While I normally love collectathons, this game's use of a collectathon structure didn't really impress me much. I mean, I enjoyed roaming these massive playgrounds, interacting with all the NPCs, and taking in the world, but I didn't feel as satisfied collecting the... well, collectibles. It felt a bit arbitrary at times. Progression is typically locked behind doors, and the only way to open the doors is by collecting enough experience. I was never in a situation where I needed to backtrack to collect more experience, but I can imagine it being a dealbreaker for others.

I'd argue the game shined the best when the levels were simply about reaching the goal. The inside of the Hollow Tree and the Tower were my favourite parts of the game for those reasons. There were also mini challenges scattered throughout the two worlds. They reminded me of the FLUDD-less levels from Mario Sunshine, but unlike those stages, you actually had all your tools available.

In spite of how confusing I found the story, I was satisfied with the ending. The climb up the Tower was arduous in the best ways possible. And once I finally reached the top, I was greeted with a blissful credits theme while Seve was forced out of his dreams. No, he never got his nachos. But you know who did? That rat bastard, Alexis. You troglodyte, you shouldn't be eating nachos if you're wearing braces!

One more thing I should note is that Corn Kidz 64 is a very, very short game. There's only two worlds, two linear tower levels, and a handful of bonus levels here and there. But honestly, I didn't feel underwhelmed by the length. Considering how much it pushes its mechanics, I'm not sure how much further they could have gone. I would definitely love to see more of this game, but it still managed to be a short yet sweet and satisfying experience. It may just be the GOAT of goat based games I've ever played!

I’m adding this paragraph in retrospect. I finally fully completed Corn Kidz 64, and holy sweet goddamn. This might be one of the most mind blowing experiences I’ve ever had with a video game; let alone a 3D platformer. I’d have to write an entire video essay about it to truly represent my thoughts, but all I can say is that Corn Kidz manages to push itself to limits I’ve never seen any other game come close to even attempting. On top of the game itself already being a hell of a lot of fun, I think I have to raise my rating to a 4.5/5. I mean; for the love of the dog god, I’ve had dreams about this game and I can’t stop rambling about it to my partner. I never thought a cute little N64 tribute would ever become an intense fixation of mine! But hey, sometimes you just need to design some goofy goat characters, and that’s all it takes to get me attached. The point is, I hecking love this game.

Still craving polygonal platforming goodness after the brilliant Pseudoregalia, Corn Kidz 64 immediately jumped out to me. Where Pseudoregalia is sparse and ethereal, Corn Kidz 64 is densely packed and full of attention to detail, creating an immensely interactable platforming experience. It feels reminiscent of Banjo-Kazooie in this respect, but with a far more nuanced move set.

Seve is the perfect protagonist for his mechanics, this grungy little goat with a low centre of gravity being appropriately weighty, setting the pace for the explorative poking and prodding this world excels at. Both him and Pseudoregalia's own anthropomorphic goat protagonist serve as exemplars of platforming character design and animation, with each having a totally distinct style of platforming that is perfectly captured in their physicality.

I adore almost everything Corn Kidz 64 has going on, but unfortunately it's over far too soon. It's been described by the creator as a "pilot episode", so with any luck we'll eventually get the full show. If an increased scope can be achieved without sacrificing the amazing attention to detail on display here, Corn Kidz will be one of the best to ever do it.

Sometimes I like going into a game so blind that I don't even know the basic premise of said game. Now this is probably a bad idea for games since sometimes you'll be slamming down 40 to 60 bones on some games but in the case of something like this which was 7 dollars I figured 'Eh if it sucks it's not that big of a loss" so I booted it up and tbh I don't know what I was expecting with this game but I was still pleasantly surprised.

Corn Kidz is yet another fan made attempt to replicate the look and feel of 3D platformers of the early 3D 5th gen systems with this one mostly going for N64 (duh the title). I've played many of these tribute games and while I always appreciate the effort the devs put into their games it always feels like less of a tribute games harkening back to that early era and more so trying to mimic the style and falling prey to all the worst parts of that era like bad camera, slippery controls, and a monotonous amount of collectibles that all feel have haphazardly placed. Corn Kidz falls somewhere in between these types of games but more so on the side of which I like more.

For one thing the game nails that 5th gen polygonal graphics to a T and even does a good job formating the game in the proper 4x3 aspect ratio which I really don't see many of these tribute games try to pull off. The most impressive part of the general look of the game are the filters used to mimic that hazy CRT tv look. I'm very picky when it comes to my CRT filters since most times then a game or emulator tries to add in filters to mimic old CRT component cables. It always looks fake or too digital or so blurry you can't even tell what you're looking at. Corn Kidz did the impossible where the filters used not only don't look like complete dogshit but also do a nearly perfect job replicating that CRT haze that the N64 had. It's not perfect. You can still clearly tell that this game is using filters most of the time and it still has that digital sheen that gives it away but I think that only applies to nerds like me who can tell regardless, overall it's an amazing achievement given how small the team of this game was.
The gameplay is also extremely fun which is probably the most make or break when it comes to these 5th gen tribute games. It really doesn't strive to do much to differentiate itself besides having its movement be more forced with precise platforming akin to others like Hat in Time or Mario 64. The animations are really well done and overall it's just fun to move around and collect random stuff which is at the end of the day the main goal for 3D platformers.

The only thing I wish the game did better was having a more consistent thematic style. What I mean is a lot of the game's levels don't really make much sense for why it's there or what it's purpose is; but since it takes place in a dream I guess you can say it just fellows dream logic where nothing makes sense, so this playground/house/water dungeon/tower...thing????makes complete sense. I'm not even saying the 2 levels this game has are bad, it's more so I would've like the levels to stand out with an interesting aspect to them that makes me remember them more, like how Banjo or Conker did it. This problem also falls with the characters of the game as well. Again I don’t think the characters of this game are bad just like how I don't think the worlds themselves are bad, I just would’ve liked it if the characters had more layers to them besides the one note archetypes they've been given. Besides some jokes that are kinda whatever they don’t really have much long lasting memorable elements to them besides their roles in the game’s mechanics. Hell, I finished the game a few days ago and I’m struggling to even remember the main character's name. They’re fun in the moment to moment gameplay and serve the purpose for the game’s design but don’t stand out as memorable characters in their own way; at least to me. I also would've liked it if it had more than 2 worlds rather than just one normal world and the other being the tutorial world, but given how this was a small team I'm not gonna say it's a real problem.

I think overall the devs succeeded in what they set out to achieve with this game. If they set out to make a loving tribute to 5th gen 3D platformers of the era they did a fantastic job at it. It surpasses in a lot of areas that I've seen other games fall flat on and it also excels at almost everything else, I just wish there was more to the game itself and it had a more consistent identity to it's levels and characters besides the surface level "oh it's a spooky 3D platformer". As it stands, it's a really great fan game that really needs to find a more concrete identity of what it wants to be outside of mimicking the N64's visual style and game structure.

Magic is real. If you didn't know that yet, I'm sure it just rocked your world. This previously fictitious concept of a bottle-able, anti-reality force that opposes our predefined sense of nature is actually tangible. Inch toward grappling with this new reality until you can make peace with it, understand how things have changed, and tackle it head on. Magic, to you, was once intuitive. Santa was able to deliver gifts to all the children of the world in just one night. Magicians could bend spoons, vanish rabbits, or walk on water. There was a profit to be made from knocking all your teeth out on purpose and banking with the Tooth Fairy. I understand if you need to sit down for a second. While you're sitting, you might wanna do something to relax. It might help you parse the shattering information you just learned. Everyone has different techniques to relax, so go ahead and choose your favorite. Maybe you indulge in a favorite snack, or just lay your head to rest.

I, personally, play video games- no matter the mood.

Corn Kidz 64 knows magic is real. It transforms the reality of magic into a confident display utilizing a true, relatable, childlike wonder; indulgence with an edge. The emo goat-duo that the game follows speak with a bit-tongue's amount of Lulz. It's just the right amount of a personality anyone playing this game is definitely familiar with: it never gets grating or "cringey." It's obvious the game's solo-dev holds this kind of early internet culture close to his heart, as the game lacks any kind of deathly serious motive or secret agenda. The playable character wants Nachos, and Nachos are a funny food, so we run with it. It's all an excuse for cute interactions between characters, which is as noble of a goal as any. It harkens back to any adult's deviantart childhood in a non-punishing way. This reflective purity is also displayed through the game's obviously 5th generation iterative visual style, something also close to home to the dev, evident through its perfect execution. The vast, supernaturally colored skyboxes, misty textures, and oddly specific architecture offers a unique impression through a familiar lens, it's fantastic and needs no discussion past this.

The game's visuals and writing is a match made in heaven, as it isn't baiting the player along its path. Corn Kidz is more than the memory of a trident controller, as it brings the sharp, cutthroat "edgy"ness of teenaged creation with it, and it's completely welcome. The goats complain about being "developmentally crippled mutants", there's cartoonish gore, and gothic theming all over Wolloh's Hollow. Allusions to religious satire and ethically dubious acts tie the game's presentation in a nice, torn up, black bow. I wanted to say early it's a match made in hell, but that would've sounded like an insult lacking context. The whole package is so relatable to me. It isn't just this "fantastical" sense of childhood or Wonder, it's the unexpected intensity. The slapstick fluid animation that binds it, the seemingly inappropriate theming, I am into this stuff.

But above it all, Corn Kidz is aware of magic's rules.

It's secrets lie within conviction- the power to do things because you know you can. Belief in "corn powers" and the supernatural.
If you don't think you can make a jump and chicken out, you're lacking the faith that fuels the magic. This game has mastered what I call the "skin-of-your-teeth" jump like I haven't seen since Mario 64. Every jump will have you sucking air through your teeth until you exhale. Some jumps seem impossible without the fated "upgrade" or "different ability" you'll never get. It's all a matter of analyzing your seemingly unintuitive surroundings, thinking about your approach, and executing. It's very satisfying. "Unintuitive" is really the name of the game here, especially when it comes to puzzle solving, as every solution has a very cryptic, yet retroactively obvious, solution. It encourages the player to study every option in the toybox they roam and leads them to the discovery that no room, no object, is unneccessary. If something seems menial or strictly humorous, the odds are its an incredibly important piece to a multi-step puzzle. This would usually bother me, but since Seve is so fun to control, it doesn't matter. Just as jumps are tailored, Seve's turn radius, speed, and limited moves leave so much room in their simplicity and effectiveness for wonderful player-interaction with the world. While his wall jumps, sidling, and homing attacks are simple on paper, there are iterations on them that further encourage a unique thought directive in the player. For example, you jump higher on walls when you push against them, so "impossible" distances actually just require some prior proximity. Seve's air-boost homing attack magnetizes to distant objects, but blasting off of them isn't attached to your control stick or inherent to your previously chosen direction. This impressed me; It's actually initiated through an extra button input after colliding with an object, which gives you slack time to continually boost wherever you want again while airborne. I play a lot of Sonic games, and the "answer" to flow-stopping homing attacks has always alluded me, and this serves as a more than functional alternative. It's COOL. There's room for experimentation within Seve's base movement too, there are faster ways of travel other than walking if you're willing to take the time to try; but frankly, the game doesn't need it. Everything is so close together and you unlock so many shortcuts around the areas that travel is never obnoxious. The hands off camera functionality works wonders for the game's flow, and additives to it like a "look directly down" button and distant option make it even better. Old 3d platformers have gotten a lot of flack for their cameras, but I've always been a proponent of the camera being a mechanic just as much as a moveset or obstacle is. It's something you need to tackle and understand, and often times, trust for the best experience. Corn Kidz 64 is no different if you're willing to sit down and shut up.

Magic lies in confidence and confidence is as real as you're willing to display. If you didn't know that yet, I'm sure it just rocked your world.

A great retro throwback 3D collectathon in the vein of Banjo-Kazooie, executed to a stupidly high level of quality, Corn Kidz 64 was a game that truly engrossed me with its puzzle filled world to explore. Controls are fluid, animations are extremely bouncy and stylised - as are the low poly retro aesthetics - and scouring the game's level for XP cubes was a blast. The platforming controls are extremely fluid, allowing you to chain tons of jumps and horn dashes together by using specific level objects. The game's XP cubes are hidden everywhere, but the best secrets lie behind careful analysis of the game world and then executing chains of jumps to access them. Extra hidden collectibles are concealed in truly obscure areas, the vast majority of which I could not find (the few I went out of my way to Google the location and try to get were a pain to reach), but at least there is still things to find if I decide to return down the line, as is the final difficult gauntlet level. Highly recommend it, especially since its so cheap! Absolutely worth the asking price.

A wonderful little blend of N64/PS1, Invader Zim & Halloween aesthetic wrapped up in a revival collectathon that's brimming with charm. I don't want to judge the gameplay too much since I think I'm just bad at the game; some of the progression collectables seem a little hard to figure out how to get & a lot of the timed ones I sucked ass at (which is why I'm giving it such a high score, I will take on a git gud responsibility and not blame the game). A pretty solid amount of content for such a low price, I will definitely keep the developers in my mind for what they do next/add-ons to this.