Wendy: Every Witch Way for the Game Boy Color is probably one of Wayforward’s better known licensed deals, aside from obviously more popular ones like Ducktales Remastered or Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d You Steal Our Garbage?!!. It would later inspire their original Mighty Flip Champs!, so this game must have value, right? It must be special in some way, right?? Is it your typical licensed shite, or is it a genuinely good game?
My worthless star rating must’ve given it away already, the short answer is yes, this is actually a solid game, in my opinion WAY better than most of the licensed games I’ve played. What’s so good about it? First, it’s central mechanic – flipping gravity, is unique and interesting. Sure, it must’ve been done better since this game’s release (the aforementioned Mighty Flip Champs! and probably other games), and it was probably done better by it’s inspiration, Metal Storm (I have not played it, so no comment), but if we take this game in a vacuum or compare it to other licensed games, it’s definitely more innovative than the majority. Of course, it would be in vain if the level design wasn't very good, but, second, the level design is good and I think the flipping gravity mechanic is executed well enough. Some enemies can be flipped with the gravity as well, and some of them react differently. The platforming is quite decent, with a few additional gimmicks here and there to make the gameplay more varied, like the lightbulb-looking creatures that mess with your flipping (now that I think of it, they remind me of the automatic switching mechanic from the last levels of Mighty Switch Force! games, though not as consistent). There are also a few shoot-em-up sections, admittedly they’re pretty average (although they are considered to be "bonus" levels), but the meat and potatoes of this stew is obviously the platforming. There's only one boss battle - the final one, that is also presented in a shoot-em-up style, but it’s very simple once you figure it out (not even altered for harder difficulty). I think this game could've used more bosses that utilized the flipping mechanic (preferrably in platforming game mode).
One big problem is that the game is REALLY short, clocking in about 40 minutes, a common thing for licensed games, but I think this one is on the shorter side. You do have 3 extra levels unlocked by playing it on a Game Boy Advance system, but it’s not much. There are two difficulties – normal and hard. I’ve played both, and the only differences is that there are more enemies and that spikes are insta-kills. However, the game offers infinite continues and passwords after each level, and even then, the game is still pretty easy, even with slightly trickier enemy positions. I think the game should’ve altered the level design wholesale to make the game appropriately more challenging, doubling down on its central mechanic. Still though, even if the game is easy, that doesn’t automatically make the game bad. The core mechanics are still enjoyable, and the level design is engaging enough.
The graphics are pretty nice, they’re colorful and the sprites are well animated, and the backgrounds are quite detailed and there are some nice effects like parallax and transparency effects. The music is a bit more average, not very memorable with only a few good tracks. Also of note is that whenever you pick up a star, which is a health refill, Wendy exclaims "YEAH!" and the music gets cut off during that.
Overall, Wendy: Every Witch Way is honestly a pretty solid platformer, I'd say one of the finest on the Game Boy Color. It’s easy and short, but it has a unique central mechanic and engaging level design that explores said mechanic well enough, it controls well and looks pretty nice. I like it.
My worthless star rating must’ve given it away already, the short answer is yes, this is actually a solid game, in my opinion WAY better than most of the licensed games I’ve played. What’s so good about it? First, it’s central mechanic – flipping gravity, is unique and interesting. Sure, it must’ve been done better since this game’s release (the aforementioned Mighty Flip Champs! and probably other games), and it was probably done better by it’s inspiration, Metal Storm (I have not played it, so no comment), but if we take this game in a vacuum or compare it to other licensed games, it’s definitely more innovative than the majority. Of course, it would be in vain if the level design wasn't very good, but, second, the level design is good and I think the flipping gravity mechanic is executed well enough. Some enemies can be flipped with the gravity as well, and some of them react differently. The platforming is quite decent, with a few additional gimmicks here and there to make the gameplay more varied, like the lightbulb-looking creatures that mess with your flipping (now that I think of it, they remind me of the automatic switching mechanic from the last levels of Mighty Switch Force! games, though not as consistent). There are also a few shoot-em-up sections, admittedly they’re pretty average (although they are considered to be "bonus" levels), but the meat and potatoes of this stew is obviously the platforming. There's only one boss battle - the final one, that is also presented in a shoot-em-up style, but it’s very simple once you figure it out (not even altered for harder difficulty). I think this game could've used more bosses that utilized the flipping mechanic (preferrably in platforming game mode).
One big problem is that the game is REALLY short, clocking in about 40 minutes, a common thing for licensed games, but I think this one is on the shorter side. You do have 3 extra levels unlocked by playing it on a Game Boy Advance system, but it’s not much. There are two difficulties – normal and hard. I’ve played both, and the only differences is that there are more enemies and that spikes are insta-kills. However, the game offers infinite continues and passwords after each level, and even then, the game is still pretty easy, even with slightly trickier enemy positions. I think the game should’ve altered the level design wholesale to make the game appropriately more challenging, doubling down on its central mechanic. Still though, even if the game is easy, that doesn’t automatically make the game bad. The core mechanics are still enjoyable, and the level design is engaging enough.
The graphics are pretty nice, they’re colorful and the sprites are well animated, and the backgrounds are quite detailed and there are some nice effects like parallax and transparency effects. The music is a bit more average, not very memorable with only a few good tracks. Also of note is that whenever you pick up a star, which is a health refill, Wendy exclaims "YEAH!" and the music gets cut off during that.
Overall, Wendy: Every Witch Way is honestly a pretty solid platformer, I'd say one of the finest on the Game Boy Color. It’s easy and short, but it has a unique central mechanic and engaging level design that explores said mechanic well enough, it controls well and looks pretty nice. I like it.