Although I'm tempted to just the post the lyrics to the "We Like Pizza" song like I did on Steam, I figured I should do an actual review of this game.
In a nutshell, it's definitely a really good platformer overall. The movement and controls feel really snappy and fluid, and the levels do a good job of encouraging speed while adding some bits of exploration here and there with all the collectibles (such as the bonus rooms and the pizza topping characters to get enough 'money' to unlock boss fights). I won't deny that I've never really gotten into the Wario Land series... or, well, beaten any of the games despite owning the first one on 3DS, but from what I played this really does a good job of paying homage to that series while having enough of it's own gameplay perks to help it stand out from it's own.
There's a lot of replay value in the levels, part of which comes into play with the game's ranking system, which heavily encourages you to rack up "combos" by defeating as many enemies as you can in a fast enough sequence, while also collecting many collectibles along the way, and can provide incentive to learn the controls and how they play with the level design. On the note of the controls, the game gives the player a good amount of variety with Peppino's moveset, both natively and with some of the different abilities/power-ups(?) you get in many levels. The 'dash' is definitely the most prominent here which not only is used to pick up speed but to practically plow through enemies, and of course it's really fun to use. Even Mort the Chicken from that obscure PS1 game appears here as a sort of power-up in one of the levels so that really says something.
I will say though that while I respect the variety I do have some gripes with the game's mechanics. The wall running is definitely the one I have the most issue with largely because, especially with how fast this game has you going sometimes, it's pretty easy to accidentally activate it and in the process kind of disrupts the pace entirely. Obviously I do get that there does need to obstacles in place so it doesn't just feel like I'm holding the dash button to win, but the way the mechanic works can sometimes get annoying when you have a sort of "flow" going on, especially when trying to rack up combos/points or when you're trying to make good time in any of the chase sequences, plus with how fast you're usually going it's hard to rectify it before you hit the ceiling which, again, kinda kills the pace. Granted it's not a big enough deal to where it made the game feel less fun, but it is a slight annoyance that I kept running into throughout the game. The Super Jump ability also isn't too great - being designed in a way that's pretty situational with how the levels are structured, and while I do appreciate that the game gives you the ability to get into a position before letting go, the movement still feels pretty sluggish and pace-breaking. Also ima be real the 'golf' level kind of sucked.
I will commend the game for it's approach to difficulty balancing though - ultimately being open to how one chooses to play the game. Playing through the game normally isn't too hard (albeit the bosses can get pretty frustrating), but like I said the game has a ranking system based off of how many points you score, and even beyond the 'S Ranks' there's an even higher 'P' rank that one can try to achieve which basically rewards complete mastery of each level - finding all three bonus rooms, collect all treasure and doing a second lap while maintaining a consistent combo. Ranking systems in games have never really been something I've put too much stock into, but I really do like how the game offers something for many different kinds of players.
The presentation is also really nice. The style was notably influenced by 1990's Nicktoons and you can really see that in the game. The game primarily reminded me of the style of Ren and Stimpy and Rocko's Modern Life (and some of the minor character designs gave me sort of 'Chowder' vibes even if that's a bit later on on a different channel), and as an animation fan... well, I really like it. The soundtrack's also pretty good but I don't really have too much to say about it.
Overall, despite having a few minor grievances here and there, I can definitely see why this game has gotten as popular as it is. It's a really fun time, and for $20 (or $15 as I paid in the Steam Summer Sale), there's definitely a lot of replay value to find. I don't think it'll be everyone's cup of tea admittedly, and the game does have a slightly steep learning curve to it at least when it comes to Peppino's abilities and combat, but I think it's worth checking out if you haven't already.
(hi-fi rush is still the best game of 2023 so far don't @ me)
In a nutshell, it's definitely a really good platformer overall. The movement and controls feel really snappy and fluid, and the levels do a good job of encouraging speed while adding some bits of exploration here and there with all the collectibles (such as the bonus rooms and the pizza topping characters to get enough 'money' to unlock boss fights). I won't deny that I've never really gotten into the Wario Land series... or, well, beaten any of the games despite owning the first one on 3DS, but from what I played this really does a good job of paying homage to that series while having enough of it's own gameplay perks to help it stand out from it's own.
There's a lot of replay value in the levels, part of which comes into play with the game's ranking system, which heavily encourages you to rack up "combos" by defeating as many enemies as you can in a fast enough sequence, while also collecting many collectibles along the way, and can provide incentive to learn the controls and how they play with the level design. On the note of the controls, the game gives the player a good amount of variety with Peppino's moveset, both natively and with some of the different abilities/power-ups(?) you get in many levels. The 'dash' is definitely the most prominent here which not only is used to pick up speed but to practically plow through enemies, and of course it's really fun to use. Even Mort the Chicken from that obscure PS1 game appears here as a sort of power-up in one of the levels so that really says something.
I will say though that while I respect the variety I do have some gripes with the game's mechanics. The wall running is definitely the one I have the most issue with largely because, especially with how fast this game has you going sometimes, it's pretty easy to accidentally activate it and in the process kind of disrupts the pace entirely. Obviously I do get that there does need to obstacles in place so it doesn't just feel like I'm holding the dash button to win, but the way the mechanic works can sometimes get annoying when you have a sort of "flow" going on, especially when trying to rack up combos/points or when you're trying to make good time in any of the chase sequences, plus with how fast you're usually going it's hard to rectify it before you hit the ceiling which, again, kinda kills the pace. Granted it's not a big enough deal to where it made the game feel less fun, but it is a slight annoyance that I kept running into throughout the game. The Super Jump ability also isn't too great - being designed in a way that's pretty situational with how the levels are structured, and while I do appreciate that the game gives you the ability to get into a position before letting go, the movement still feels pretty sluggish and pace-breaking. Also ima be real the 'golf' level kind of sucked.
I will commend the game for it's approach to difficulty balancing though - ultimately being open to how one chooses to play the game. Playing through the game normally isn't too hard (albeit the bosses can get pretty frustrating), but like I said the game has a ranking system based off of how many points you score, and even beyond the 'S Ranks' there's an even higher 'P' rank that one can try to achieve which basically rewards complete mastery of each level - finding all three bonus rooms, collect all treasure and doing a second lap while maintaining a consistent combo. Ranking systems in games have never really been something I've put too much stock into, but I really do like how the game offers something for many different kinds of players.
The presentation is also really nice. The style was notably influenced by 1990's Nicktoons and you can really see that in the game. The game primarily reminded me of the style of Ren and Stimpy and Rocko's Modern Life (and some of the minor character designs gave me sort of 'Chowder' vibes even if that's a bit later on on a different channel), and as an animation fan... well, I really like it. The soundtrack's also pretty good but I don't really have too much to say about it.
Overall, despite having a few minor grievances here and there, I can definitely see why this game has gotten as popular as it is. It's a really fun time, and for $20 (or $15 as I paid in the Steam Summer Sale), there's definitely a lot of replay value to find. I don't think it'll be everyone's cup of tea admittedly, and the game does have a slightly steep learning curve to it at least when it comes to Peppino's abilities and combat, but I think it's worth checking out if you haven't already.
(hi-fi rush is still the best game of 2023 so far don't @ me)