Balan Wonderworld makes people wonder how it could have been

Balan Wonderworld first seemed like the perfect fairytale coming alive on our next-gen consoles. The game was spearheaded by the famous Yuji Naka, who is known for developing Sonic games, as well as Nights into Dreams. While this atmosphere was clearly present in the end product, things have sadly not worked out well for this new release and developer.

The game is getting awful critic reviews because many deem the game to be unfinished. While many agree that the cinematics and the overall atmosphere are quite nice, it’s the graphical prowess of the actual gameplay and the mechanics that end up leaving people with a bad aftertaste. The game’s unique quirk is the many different costumes you can collect, which in turn represent different skills and abilities. Even though many of these are adorable and serve a purpose, many of the ones you find in later levels have the same function as those you find early on. Due to this, it feels like too much attention was spent to create diverse outfits, rather than polish the actual gameplay.

When looking at the game from a modern point of view, everything outside of the cinematics falls flat on its behind. The gameplay feels like a step back, as everything is controlled with a single button and of course, the sticks to move and look around. Everything feels a bit rushed, and it’s clear that the cinematic quality of the game does not translate into its gameplay. Then again, there are some who absolutely adore the game, but also those who take a moderate approach and clearly depict the game for what it is, a retro-inspired title, by a retro-orientated developer. Is this a bad thing? Not necessarily if you know what you’re getting. The game is actually quite fun if you look at it from that angle. It doesn’t take away the many bugs that are still present, however.

We always feel that retro-inspired games have a place in our modern gaming landscape. We also feel that they can be perfectly adjusted to more modern needs, with also keeping that retro feel intact. We do have to stress, however, that this should be properly marketed as such, making it clear what the gamer on the receiving end is getting. Balan Wonderworld is one of those projects that should have been advertised as a retro project, at a lower price, perhaps only getting a limited physical release for retro collectors. Even with the subpar reception for this project, we do encourage another big publisher to release games like this, albeit with properly adjusted marketing campaigns.