RetroRealms Arcade review: Reviving the art of platformers one Halloween character at a time
RetroRealms Arcade, developed by WayForward Technologies and published by Boss Team Games, was released on October 17, 2024. In the game, you take control of your favorite character from a spooky franchise and platform your way to the end of each level; navigating the many perils and carving a bloody path through enemies as you see fit.
RetroRealms Arcade: First impressions and gameplay
As soon as I booted up RetroRealms Arcade, it was love at first sight. Something about 16-bit graphics takes me back to my teenage years when I would play Claw and Rayman, not to forget Contra and Felix the Cat (NES). I was thrilled to see that you quite literally have to walk into an arcade to access the game. It's a very nice touch of nostalgia.
I was given access to all parts of RetroRealms Arcade that are currently available: Ash vs Evil Dead (Ash Williams), Kelly Maxwell (Ash vs Evil Dead), Halloween (Michael Myers), and Laurie Strode (Halloween).
What's great about RetroRealms Arcade is that the characters are not limited to one franchise. For instance, most of my playthrough was as Ash Williams in the Halloween franchise. It felt a bit weird at first, but I thoroughly enjoyed every moment. That said, let me jot down my thoughts and gameplay impressions.
Characters and enemies
I played Ash vs Evil Dead as Ash Williams to start my gameplay. Suffice it to say, it feels like the world of Ash vs Evil Dead was brought to life there. The world setup replicates the franchise in all its wacky glory. It's not just the overworld that catches your attention, but the detail of the character as well. Ash Williams looks and feels every bit as he would in the series on screen. The same goes for Michael Myers.
Coming to enemies, there is no shortage of them as they tend to respawn after a while. Depending on which game you choose within the Arcade, the enemy types will vary accordingly.
To add another dynamic layer, you will find more enemy types in the Nightmare Realm. They aren't all that scary, but since they appear as soon you shift from one realm to the other, they might catch you off guard. At times, I found myself taking damage as soon as I jumped realms, but it's usually not that bad, as enemies once defeated dropped healing items.
Level/World design
I knew the game was going to be great since I managed to die quite a few times within mere minutes. That's a sign that the design of the world/level is going to be challenging, and indeed it was. Did I find things impossible to navigate? No. Do I such at the game? Probably yes, but I did find immense pleasure after completing each level and witnessing the scoreboard appear.
Perhaps one thing I did find rather challenging to overcome was the lack of save points. Personally, I would have loved a few more save points added to each level, not that the current ones are bad, but I feel it would make gameplay a tad easier. Then again, as I mentioned, I probably just suck at the game and needed a few attempts to overcome each part of the level.
That being said, the variation of levels is truly amazing. There are secrets to discover in the normal world and the Nightmare Realm. This makes it necessary to switch between them now and then to ensure you're collecting every collectible out there. At times, it can get channeling, especially if the enemy's movement pattern seems awry, but rest assured, there is a way to get every last memento out there.
Keep in mind that when switching between the Nightmare Realm and the normal realms, you're not standing in an area that is marked in red. If you spawn back to the normal realm while placed in these areas, you will be turned to red mist and respawn again; wasting one of your lives. It goes without saying that I learned this the hard way, but experimented a few times just to be sure. Don't be like me.
Weapons and abilities
Each playable character has unique weapons and abilities that you can unlock as you progress. In essence, they will all do the same thing; smash the undead into pieces, but they all look and feel very different.
You will also be increase your health, unlock special moves, and even increase the time on your Nightmare Meter, allowing you to stay in the other realm for a bit longer. Just remember to be in a safe spot when the meter runs out.
Performance and sound
RetroRealms Arcade, provided by Boss Team Games, was played on a system having the following configurations:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X
- GPU: RTX 3070 8GB
- RAM: 32 GB
Throughout my playthrough, I encountered no issues at all. Everything worked flawlessly. In terms of sound, they were spot-on in every instance. The cutscenes were really entertaining to watch.
In conclusion
RetroRealms Arcade may be a 16-bit experience, but it has a lot of heart and soul to offer alongside blood and guts. If you enjoy platformers, learning patterns of enemies, jumping over, through, and under obstacles to get to secret areas, and boss fights; well, this is the perfect game for this Halloween.
I pretty much suck at the game because I played using the keyboard, don't be me and use a controller. It'll be far more fun and easy to execute moves and attacks.
All in all, RetroRealms Arcade was pretty darn fun, and even though I'm struggling to make it to the very end, and I'm frustrated at this point, it proves that the game is good. It's challenging yet fair. Once you master the controls and timing, you're going to have a lot of fun navigating the different levels.
RetroRealms Arcade
Reviewed on: PC (Review code provided by Boss Team Games)
Platform: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S
Developer: WayForward Technologies
Publisher: Boss Team Games
Release: October 17, 2024