Preface: this is absolutely a salty review. The soundtrack is killer, the art direction and sprites are awesome - but holy fuck do I hate this game's level and boss design lol.

I do not miss the era when difficulty stemmed solely from either memorizing a mess back to front or powering through. (the timer sure won't let you slow down and play methodically) This, on top of dealing with enemies and boss patterns happening off screen with no indication and the incredible lighting system working against its benefit, (making it tough to discern most of the power-ups and some enemies in darkened areas) most of the back half of this game becomes a chore.

This is the first time in a really long time I've played something that absolutely counts as a hidden gem. It's got some flaws and it's way too short for the price it would have been around its release, but boy is it such good fun.

Akin to something like "Stuntman, but as a heist film", Felony is an interesting approach to an arcade-like racer. It feels like a wild take on driving in the same way Outrun felt for its time. I loved the theming, the distinct setpieces and car choices and I think the car handling is actually pretty good too! The handbrake in particular felt great to use while driving the Mini Cooper. However, 3 levels that take around ~5 minutes each is criminal, especially when the replay value hinges less on making split-second driving decisions and more on route memorization.

Absolutely a game everyone should give a shot if they find themselves able to, and a gameplay style and theme I wish another game tackles better.