PlayStation 4 code provided by Caracal Games
As someone who’s very competitive when it comes to games that time my completion, I thought that OkunoKA Madness would be one that would speak to me. Caracal Games did a great job of developing a title that tests not only your speed but your memory and agility as well. This is something that was created for a specific audience in mind so some may not be drawn to what it has to offer. While there is fun to be had, I do think that there is a bit that can be improved upon.
Story
This game is a direct sequel to the original OkunoKA game which centers around KA. In this game too, you’ll play as him and once again save the world. I would’ve liked to see some kind of story but unfortunately, it was left to the weigh-side. I’m unsure if this decision was made because the gameplay was more important or because the original title was a Nintendo Switch exclusive. They could’ve made the decision for that reason because they didn’t want new players to feel out of the loop.
Gameplay
As there isn’t actually a story to tell in this game, the gameplay is king. Your main objective is to get through each level the best way you can. You’ll jump, run, and use magic powers to overcome obstacles and enemies within each one. Another thing you’ll have to do is memorize your path as you go. Death is swift and painful and will happen a lot on your journey. There are a total of 3 different types of game modes for you to play around with. There’s Story Mode, Madness, and Time Trials.
Story mode is the best one to choose when getting started with the game. This allows you to become comfortable with KA and each of the other characters you’ll be able to unlock within the game. The levels start out pretty easy at first and ramp up the action as you progress. Each stage of levels takes place in worlds with their own terrain, weather, and creatures. Continuing through each one will add new obstacles and ways of traversing the levels.
Traversal in the game is extremely simple but mastering it is what becomes complex. Many levels require air-tight timing and movement to progress through them. Most of the time you’ll be bouncing from wall to wall in order to reach high places but this isn’t as easy as it might sound. The obstacles can be extremely difficult to overcome. They can move around, shoot lasers, or simply block most of the area you need to get through. Once they touch you it’s an automatic level restart. There were a handful of levels that took me over 100 tries just to finish them.
As you play the game you’ll unlock different powers that are implemented throughout your playthrough. There are 3 of them and while they are useful in completing the levels, they don’t actually differ that much from each other and seem like a lost opportunity. The powers are used to freeze ice, fire, and lightning in order for you to use them as a tool in your movement.
There are collectible little creatures in the game which allow you to unlock the vast collection of other in-game characters who exhibit their own skills. KA will be the character you’ll get used to from the start but he isn’t always going to be the best one to get the job done. Because of the different structures of the levels and the varying methods needed to complete them, these skills can come in handy. It’ll make getting through these tougher levels a breeze. It’s pretty cool to play with each one and figure out which works best in a given situation.
As far as the obstacles go, there is room for improvement. There’s really only a few different hazards that’ll send you back to the starting line. The worst part is that they look the same on every single level and world aside from the thorns and spikes that cover walls and pits. A bigger variety of these from world to world would have created the need for the player to adapt to new disturbances. The final execution of these feels under-developed.
The game does have boss battles at the end of each world and they all bring something unique to them. Some of them play out in a regular boss battle fashion where you have to watch their patterns whereas others differ. One in particular, would chase you up a level as you would try desperately to make your way up in time. The thing I didn’t like about this boss was the fact that it didn’t matter how fast I’d finish a segment in the level because he’d automatically catch right up to me when I’d get further. It actually comes off as extremely unfair and cheap. I appreciate a good amount of difficulty in a game but I don’t appreciate it when a game uses false difficulty to hold the player back.
Madness mode allows you to use all 3 available powers immediately and sets you off on its own set of worlds and obstacles. This mode offers harder levels from the get-go and doesn’t take it easy on you. This is most definitely a game mode for people experienced in the movement controls. I actually enjoyed these levels the most during my playthrough. They’re harder but that calls for the level design to be more intricate at times.
Trials mode allows you to play the worlds you’ve already become familiar with and lets you run wild in them. Your goal is to complete the stage as quickly as possible. What’s the catch? You can’t restart each level. A restart means a completely clean slate at the beginning of each stage. This means that you truly have to make sure that every movement does not put you in harm’s way. This mode can be fun when you want to really test yourself and see how high in the leaderboards you can fly.
It also allows players to create their own custom line-up of trial runs. Using levels from the game’s stages, you’re able to make your own set in the order of your choosing. It’s a cool idea to do this but again it feels like a weak attempt at something bigger. A custom trials run makes it sound like you’re able to create your own levels which is not an available feature in the game. I think that this is something that it could’ve benefitted from very much so.
Visuals
It’s quite clear that the developers took a great appreciation in creating a beautiful looking world for players to explore. The artwork done for this is very beautiful and fitting for its type of gameplay. The backgrounds vibrantly and dynamically tell a story without using words. These worlds feel inhabited as if there’s a deeper lore and history to each of them.
Audio
The sounds within OkunoKA are serviceable enough to get the job done. What you’ll hear most of the time is the game’s soundtrack which was pleasant even when I heard a song for my 100th time. It’s all pretty mellow music most of the time. When taking on the bosses though, the music does get a lot harder with rock tracks playing to the beat of your demise.
Replayability
You’ll replay the many levels dozens of times just on your first playthrough because of the difficulty alone. There is enough content to keep players coming back to this title besides that though. This was created with a niche group of players in mind that’ll eat it up until its next entry into the series. This also isn’t a game that everyone is putting out, so it’s nice to see a different type of platformer with its own identity.
What It Could Have Done Better
OkunoKA does a lot right in terms of the gameplay but I feel like there’s not enough variation in the obstacles to get past. You’ll always have to freeze things with your powers and jump over/around the same enemies with nothing done to change up your expectations. The game is difficult but that doesn’t mean that it always gave me the motivation to continue.
That issue I had with the bosses really impacted my experience negatively. It’s something that I would’ve liked to come to terms with but it really did come across as being unfair. A game that’s already extremely hard doesn’t need to find ways to cheat. They could’ve thought of another idea to make that fight harder without creating a loophole for them to squeeze through when I was winning.
Verdict
This isn’t a game for anyone who doesn't like a big challenge. It will push you and punish you for the slightest mistakes in your pursuit of crushing its levels. It can be an exciting game though when it nails exactly what it intends to do. OkunoKA does a splendid job of offering a new take on the platformer genre by making time your mission. Although is has a lot going for it, there are some things that could’ve been straightened out to make it a perfect execution.
