Gaucamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition is the most refreshing Metroidvania style game since that term was coined. Yes, the game is that good.
Right off the bat you know you are experiencing something special with this title. Guacamelee is a visual treat right from the title screen, one that oozes as much style as it does substance.
The game takes heavy influence from Super Metroid, so much so that it feels like the developers had a love affair with that classic Nintendo franchise. More often than not, something like this would turn me off, but in the case of Guacamelee it works amazingly well.
The developers didn’t just look to make a clone of a franchise and gameplay style that did well in the past, instead they created something altogether unique layered on top of a fantastic system. Super Metroid worked on so many levels, so why change things that aren’t broken.
The gameplay is silky smooth and makes the experience all the more rewarding. I’ll give you a little behind the scenes on how I usually review a title that comes across my desk. Most of the time I’ll boot up a game and play for an hour or so before taking a break to clear my head, jot down some notes, and work on other projects. I had every intention of doing the same thing for Guacamelee, but once I put down the controller and quit out of Steam it showed that I had put in five straight hours with it. I can’t remember the last time I’ve had a prolonged gaming session of that length in years with a game that was completely new to me.
Playing on Steam I used my Xbox 360 controller and had very few problems overall. Every button on the controller will be used and everything seems to work out okay. Over the course of the game you will unlock new abilities by finding and destroying these very Chozo like statues. All the abilities come about just when you need them to progress in the game, but also allow you to return to previous areas to access new locations taking something as boring as backtracking and making it a rewarding experience.
The only problem I had was was when the game required me to switch between different abilities on the fly, stringing together a number of moves via controller input. This could just be me, but I often had a hard time remembering moves or punching in the wrong input. It never became so hard that it turned me off from playing, but in the late stages of the game it felt as if I was playing a nerfed version of I Wanna Be The Guy.
From the look of the game you would think that Guacamelee would be your run of the mill beat ’em up, but you would be quite wrong. The game does give off that impression from screenshots, but the fighting you do is outweighed by the games adventure like elements. There isn’t a huge variety of enemies, most being palette swaps, and each has a distinct way of needing to be dispatched. Most you can just punch into oblivion, but many will require the use of your special abilities. The main bulk of fighting will happen when the games blocks off your entrance and exit and requires to to dispatch all the enemies on a single screen. This would tend to get tedious in other games, but Guacamelee offers enough abilities and doesn’t throw enemies at you left and right outside of these bits all the time making these ‘must fight’ segments pretty fun.
The abilities your earn are what really keeps Guacamelee feeling fresh throughout the entire adventure. Colored blocks block the paths into new areas and can only be bypassed when you earn the corresponding color ability. The use of color is also one of the things that makes the game really stand out among its drab contemporaries. These abilities you find are a load of fun to use and the developers have incorporated some seriously devious platforming puzzles that will test your mastery of them.
But by far the coolest of all the abilities is the switch ability. With the press off a button you can swap between the dark world (death) and the light world (life) much like you could in The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past (these guys really did grab the best elements from the best games). This switch ability opens up an entire new way of exploring, but really comes into play when you have to combine it alongside your attack abilities during puzzle segments. What I’m saying is that you are going to die a lot, but once you figure out the right pattern the joy you’ll feel makes it all worth while.
As I mentioned before, the visuals in Guacamelee are excellent. The game is a two-dimensional sidescroller, so you can expect to see people and building perched precariously on large multi-tiered areas. The character animation of your heroes and enemies are incredibly smooth and fluid with everyone having tons of varied animations made up of a great many frames. I’ve played a lot of 2D games as the style holds a special place in my heat, but Guacamelee may just be the most beautiful looking 2D game that I have had the pleasure of playing.
The colors are bright and vibrant in the real world and dark and foreboding while in the dark world without losing their strong color palette. The lighting effects that the game employs during segments underground and the shadow effects when out in the sun are almost beyond reproach. You are going to remember the way this game looks for a long time and it just may become your barometer for all other 2D games in the future.
The music has a distinct Spanish styling mixed with a slight modern-day club influence. It works to really keep you going and paired alongside the visuals makes for an engrossing gaming experience. I would have liked to seen the game get some voice work incorporated on top of the few laughs, grunts, and other bits, but the lack of it doesn’t take anything away from the overall experience. All the characters and bosses are just so visually appealing that the addition of a voice cast would have shot the game into that special place few games can reach. The sound effects serve their purpose, but don;t do much to standout.
Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition is my first experience with the game and it really makes me feel sad that I didn’t give it my attention sooner. I am really glad I jumped into this game and this release is catered not only to the fans of the game, but to new players like myself who will be recommending it to everyone.
The game has so many features that it puts many large AAA titles to shame with all it offers. The drop in/drop out local co-operative play serves to keep the game fresh far longer than most and makes it all the more inviting to new players being introduced to the game. Online is fine and the way of the future, but there is nothing quite like having someone sitting right next to you while playing.
Guacamelee features a fun story that pulls out some gorgeous cut-scene back stories for all the major bosses giving you an understanding of why they are who they are. You get tons of unlockable costumes each with their own unique perks and leaderboards for those hungry to show off their skills to the world. Chances are you are going to find yourself coming back again and again.
Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition sits in a class all its own and needs to be in everyone’s library.
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