Also available on Switch, PlayStation 4, and Windows Super Lucky's Tale is a game that I received as a Christmas gift from my mom this year, and as a big fan of platformers, I was eager to try it (I played this before starting Shadow of War which she also gave me this year for Christmas). I wasn't really too sure what to expect going in, and while I definitely enjoyed my time with Super Lucky's Tale, those relatively low expectations helped it. Super Lucky's Tale is a fairly short 3D platformer that can be beaten in a couple of sittings (or, like I did today, one roughly 10 hour sitting). You know that generic "low budget platformer" feel that a lot of these animal mascot platformers had in the early and mid 90s? Imagine that in 4K, and that's pretty much what Super Lucky's Tale is. It's a completely average but totally playable 3D platformer with an extremely forgettable anthropomorphic mascot. The best comparison I can think to make is that it feels like a low budget Banjo-Kazooie (I haven't played Yooka-Laylee yet, so I can't say which one feels more like that). The game is actually a sequel to Lucky's Tale, a game that was released exclusively for Oculus Rift, although I doubt anyone aside from Rift users have ever heard of it. As I said, it's a fairly short game - there are only four worlds each of which are divided into five levels plus a boss. Each world has four clovers to collect - one from collecting the five L-U-C-K-Y letters, one from collecting 300 coins, one from finding a secret area, and one just for completing the level. It's extraordinarily easy to get at least two of these - the one for 300 coins and the one for completing the level - and after the first world, I usually got three of the four clovers on my first run although it varied from level to level if the clover for the five letters or the one for the secret area was easier. To fully "complete" the game, you need to collect 99 clovers. Other than its general mediocrity, the game's biggest weaknesses are the camera and the control precision. The camera is generally okay, but there are certain levels and obstacles where it becomes counterproductive. Sometimes the camera keeps you from seeing where a platform is, sometimes it makes it difficult to gauge where on the Z axis a trap is, often it make it difficult to tell where on the Z axis an enemy is if you're trying to jump on it, and it's sometimes difficult to tell the difference between a platform and ancillary background decoration. It's not game breaking, but it's definitely not an infrequent a frustration. As for the controls, they're fine, but they're a far cry from the refined feel of Mario, Donkey Kong, or Banjo. Your jump feel unusually short for a platformer, and that's especially true of the double jump. Whether or not Lucky grabs onto a ledge seems completely random, and the mid-air movement strikes an awkward balance between "yes, you can move your character in mid-air" and "no, you're stuck where you are on the X axis" that leaves it feeling like you're swimming through jelly when you're in the air. All things considered, Super Lucky's Tale is a competent 3D platformer, but don't expect the likes of Super Mario 64 or Banjo Kazooie here. Hardcore fans of platformers will likely find its imprecise controls and fairly hand-off camera frustrating, but there's still some enjoyment to be had. The game's difficulty is pretty low up until the last boss, so it's a good fit for either a game to help unwind after a hard day at work or for younger kids. It's never going to be a "greatest hits" candidate, and it'll be completely forgotten in a year (although it seems to have been largely forgotten at launch), but if you can find it for $15 or $10, it's not bad if you need that collectathon platformer itch scratched. My Rating - C |
I'm a teacher.And I like to play video games. I like to collect video games. I like to talk about video games, and I like to write about video games. During the day, I teach high school history; during the night, I spend my spare time gaming. Then I write about it. Archives
April 2024
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