Superb old-school adventure
Now this is an obscure but utterly charming old-school 2D platformer that is definitely one to check out. It features plenty of traditional multi-directional scrolling fun that is wrapped up with lovely visual design and an engaging sci-fi/fantasy-style story and is simply a joy from start to finish. The whole thing takes place on the peaceful planet of Utopia but which has been hit by a meteor carrying a terrible techno-virus which has turned it into a cold and lifeless rock. Players take control of the legendary Moon Child, an elf-like creature tasked with protecting the planet and whose destiny is now about to take shape. What this translates into is an expansive series of traditional platforming levels, split into four large worlds, each with four levels and which are nicely varied thematically. A particularly nice touch is the way that the worlds display varying levels of contact with the techno-virus, with the first one entirely unscathed and which is a glorious realm of natural wonder and with later ones showing ruined and decaying landscapes. On top of this, the game's enemies are startlingly original and inventive and again show a glorious mix of the natural and the altered, with birds and bats sitting alongside cement mixers, cannons and other such mechanical monstrosities. Level design too is devious and clever with some ingenious set-ups that will test the skills of the best platforming veterans, like magnets that turn you upside down and other such imaginative devices. The sound is the only thing which really lets the game down, with only background music and no effects but this isn't a great problem as everything else is so well put together. If you love old-school adventures like Manic Miner or Jet Set Willy, then this is a must play.
