At first the game was just a neat little thought experiment, but by the end of it I can look back positively on Balan Wonderworld. It's very obviously flawed in some major ways but through the cracks you can see some really interesting ideas.
The simple/accessible control scheme and multiple costumes is a really great idea. A problem I've had with Kirby games is that the powerups are mostly combat focused. They don't effect Kirby's movement options in any meaningful way because Kirby's baseline movement range is so wide. The suits in Balan Wonderworld provide a lot of different movement options and the levels compliment this. The levels have a lot of verticality to them and multiple ways to advance through them, some intentional and some not. It feels very satisfying to get a trophy you were not supposed to get with early game suits and clever platforming. It feels really good to maneuver around the intended path with a suit from another level opposed to the suit provided for the obstacle. There is an expression in the platforming that the game and level design gives you.
But it comes with a catch, this shit is terribly inconsistent. There is a lot of bloat in the suits. While I enjoy some of the silly one off challenge suits, like the now infamous box fox, I don’t really care for multiple suits that do literally the same thing. You get two swimming suits in chapter 2 one after the other and the second one is just better, it makes the former weirdly redundant almost as soon as you get it. The levels themselves can also be a roller coaster ride. Chapter 5 made me want to quit the game but Chapter 10 was one of the best levels I’ve ever played in any 3D platformer. Most of the little CGI stories are heartwarming but the cat one I found genuinely offensive.
With all that in mind there is a real turning point to the game. When you unlock the Frost Fairy suit this shit really gets going. That suit is so hilariously over powered in both vertical and horizontal movement options that it makes lot of the levels super trivial, but trivial in a fun cathartic way. Chapter 10 was seriously a triumph in game design. There’s an intended path to get through the level but the Frost Fairy suit gives you the freedom to wholly create your own path.
I honestly believe if this game got the time to cut a lot of the fat and polish out what it did well it could have been a really great game.
Some other thoughts:
This game is the opposite of ahead of it’s time and I say that as a compliment. I don’t think the Fortnite pilled super children of the next generation would be into this at all but I shutter to think how this game would have warped my baby brain if I somehow had access to it as a child. I would have eaten it up.
The quick time event and sports mini games I just completely avoided. That shit just seems unfinished.
The Isle of Tims is a fun little hangout spot. All games should have hangout spots.
The gameplay for bosses was pretty neat. They are all really simple to beat but the challenge is to beat them in 3 different ways with different suits. Just a neat little idea that works well with the suits.
The simple/accessible control scheme and multiple costumes is a really great idea. A problem I've had with Kirby games is that the powerups are mostly combat focused. They don't effect Kirby's movement options in any meaningful way because Kirby's baseline movement range is so wide. The suits in Balan Wonderworld provide a lot of different movement options and the levels compliment this. The levels have a lot of verticality to them and multiple ways to advance through them, some intentional and some not. It feels very satisfying to get a trophy you were not supposed to get with early game suits and clever platforming. It feels really good to maneuver around the intended path with a suit from another level opposed to the suit provided for the obstacle. There is an expression in the platforming that the game and level design gives you.
But it comes with a catch, this shit is terribly inconsistent. There is a lot of bloat in the suits. While I enjoy some of the silly one off challenge suits, like the now infamous box fox, I don’t really care for multiple suits that do literally the same thing. You get two swimming suits in chapter 2 one after the other and the second one is just better, it makes the former weirdly redundant almost as soon as you get it. The levels themselves can also be a roller coaster ride. Chapter 5 made me want to quit the game but Chapter 10 was one of the best levels I’ve ever played in any 3D platformer. Most of the little CGI stories are heartwarming but the cat one I found genuinely offensive.
With all that in mind there is a real turning point to the game. When you unlock the Frost Fairy suit this shit really gets going. That suit is so hilariously over powered in both vertical and horizontal movement options that it makes lot of the levels super trivial, but trivial in a fun cathartic way. Chapter 10 was seriously a triumph in game design. There’s an intended path to get through the level but the Frost Fairy suit gives you the freedom to wholly create your own path.
I honestly believe if this game got the time to cut a lot of the fat and polish out what it did well it could have been a really great game.
Some other thoughts:
This game is the opposite of ahead of it’s time and I say that as a compliment. I don’t think the Fortnite pilled super children of the next generation would be into this at all but I shutter to think how this game would have warped my baby brain if I somehow had access to it as a child. I would have eaten it up.
The quick time event and sports mini games I just completely avoided. That shit just seems unfinished.
The Isle of Tims is a fun little hangout spot. All games should have hangout spots.
The gameplay for bosses was pretty neat. They are all really simple to beat but the challenge is to beat them in 3 different ways with different suits. Just a neat little idea that works well with the suits.