Namco-Bandai Editor's Day - Klonoa

I've always been a fan of the runt of the pack. Heck, my first pet was the smallest dwarf hamster at the pet shop, so maybe that's why I was really enthralled with Klonoa: Door to Phantomile at the Namco-Bandai Editor Day yesterday. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing small about this remake of the classic PlayStation platformer. In fact, it is much more robust game and leaps n' bounds more graphically attractive then its original incarnation released well over 10 years ago; nevertheless, it still keeps the tight and simple gameplay of the original game, along with its quirky characters and environments.

The game is a 2.5 dimensional platformer in that it is an old-school side scrolling game that allows some third dimensional movement. The way this is done in Klonoa is by the clever ways in which the path of the character twists and turns in the environment, and the use of both the foreground and background for interaction. The gameplay is unique too in that you grab enemies with your wind bullets and can then throw or use them in unique ways to help you traverse your environment. The controls felt pretty tight when I played and they did add some Wii-motion controls to the game for the Wii-Mote + Nunchuck combo to throw characters and use your whirlwind attack; however, they assured me that the game was designed to be used with the classic controller, the GameCube controller, or even with just the Wii-mote on its side.

The game's story is very true to the original, with the player controlling Klonoa, an anthropomorphic creature with big ears who has a wind ring which fires wind bullets and also keeps his companion, Huepow. Klonoa and Huepow traverse the 13+ "visions" trying to rescue the heroine Lephise from the clutches of Ghadius and his main lackey, Joka. The plot remains the same from the original, tho some of the levels, characters, and bosses were slightly tweaked for the game. They also added in an extra level to play after you beat the game along with "reverse" levels. The reverse levels allow you to play each level in the game backwards, and to search for special hidden whirlwinds. Finding the whirlwind on each reverse level unlocks a new bonus game that I was told were "ridiculously hard". Looks like the designers decided to put a hefty bit of replay into the game.

In the end, the only thing that really makes this game a runt is the fact that it has a easy to swallow price tag attached to the game of only $29.99, which I guess is due in part to it being a remake. I think at that price point on the Wii system, this looks to be a game that many fans, both old and new, will want to snatch up. Luckily for everyone, they won't have to wait long since the game is releasing next week on May 5th in North America, and then later int he month on May 22nd for Europe.

PixelPoet
Posted to Hot Stuff, Video Games on 29 April 2009 · Comments (7)
Other stuff like this: editors day 2009, klonoa, klonoa door to phantomile, namco bandai, paon, platformer, wii