Gameplay unfolds in a standard collectathon 3D platformer fashion each world consists of two levels with a smattering of things for you to pick up and then it’s finished with a simple boss fight after the second level. Unfortunately, problems with storytelling are only the tip of the iceberg of issues responsible for sinking Balan Wonderworld. It fails to grant you even a simple, coherent explanation for why you’re collecting items and exploring this strange world. Platformers are, of course, not known for their complex narratives, but even given the low bar set by other games in the genre, this comes up short. Why did the dolphin go bad? How did collecting trinkets and beating a boss character fix things? Will the dolphin’s urge to kill come back again?Īll of this is to say, Balan Wonderworld does an absolutely awful job of telling its story.
The player’s actions obviously had a hand in this redemption, but what actually happened is never explained. But, after the boss fight at the end of her world, she goes back to the ocean and finds that the dolphin is back to its old self, and she joyously swims with it again. Then the dolphin turns on her and tries to kill her by removing her air tank. Is your character dreaming? Are they dead? Is all this a hallucinogenic trip they’re experiencing in that alley? Each of the worlds is oriented around an NPC character with their own tragic backstory, and it seems like you’re somehow helping them out by collecting things, but it’s never made clear how or what you’re really doing.įor example, one of the first worlds is about a scuba diver who enjoys swimming with her dolphin friend. Honestly, we’re not entirely sure what the narrative is here, as Balan Wonderworld refuses to explain what’s going on. Upon crossing the threshold, they’re quickly accosted by a grinning and vaguely menacing showman figure named Balan who whisks them away to a fantasy land to presumably do something good for other people.Ĭaptured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked) The children are both unhappy(?) and as they wander the streets of their city, they happen across a mysterious entrance to a place called Wonderworld in a back alley. The story starts off with you selecting either a boy or girl character, followed by a short (though well animated) cutscene which thoroughly fails to explain any of the events which follow. Stiff controls, uninteresting level design, and many other issues all come together to make for a game that simply fails to properly achieve what it sets out to do. only it’s a new release and not a relic of two decades ago. Unfortunately, Balan Wonderworld feels like a period piece in many respects. Yet here comes a brand-new seemingly high budget entry in the genre that feels straight out of 2001 (not in a good way) and it’s produced by Square Enix no less. Mascot platformers were all the rage around the turn of the century, but that fad has long since died off.
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