And that's Switch Online's May updates sorted. I really need to get the Expansion Pack so I have more stuff to play... BACKGROUND:
Look, I don't know what this game is, either. What do you want from me? SUMMARY: Congo's Caper is a platformer where you play a half-caveman, half-monkey dude named Congo who must rescue who I assume is his girlfriend from this demon villain and his themed caveman minions. Standard stuff, but I definitely wasn't expecting the main characters to be more or less Saiyans, and the villains to be outlandish in terms of their gimmicks (there's a pirate caveman, an engineer caveman, and even a vampire caveman). That does a lot to make this game stand out from the three other caveman games I've played on Super Nintendo (still can't believe there are that many; were they really popular in the early '90s?). In terms of controls, the game's mostly standard fare. Congo can jump, dash, crouch, and swing his club, and it all controls perfectly fine. Perhaps the most notable thing here is that he also has access to a high jump (done by pressing up + jump), which does exactly as advertised. There are around six worlds (each with four or so individual levels), each being slight variations of classic stage tropes (e.g. water level, jungle level, fire level, etc.) and having mechanics that are nothing out of the ordinary (spikes, moving platforms, breakable barriers). Most of the levels are short and linear, but there's a surprising amount of secret corners where you can find extra items, paths to bonus stages, and even alternate exits. Apart from the first and last worlds, you can tackle four of the worlds in any order you like, which is neat. The main collectibles are yellow jewels, which just function like Mario coins (get 100 for an extra life). These come in either the regular size, or you can find giant ones that are worth a full hundred, and can be found all throughout levels or as enemy drops. If you happen to find a pink pterodactyl, you'll be taken to one of an assortment of bonus stages that are filled to the brim with these gems. You can also acquire what appear to be clear jewels (or they're ice cubes; who can say?) that roll a slot machine on the top portion of your HUD. It's complete RNG, but if they happen to line up three in a row, you get two extra lives. Neat, I guess, but largely inconsequential. The most important collectibles are the red jewels. In your base form, you can only take two hits (the first hit turns you back into a monkey; get hit as a monkey and you're dead). Collecting a red jewel gives you an extra hit. If you manage to grab three without getting hit, you transform into a super version of Congo whose high jump goes significantly farther, and has the additional ability to hover in midair to slow his descent. It's well worth getting, as the hover makes platforming significantly easier, and the higher jump gets you into otherwise inaccessible secret areas. The level designs don't really come off as difficult when it comes to platforming, with only a few sections where I took some hits. Enemies (of which there's only a small variety) are mostly easy to dispatch, so they're placed more like obstacles in the way of fairly tricky platforming sections (and they do their job here decently well). Interestingly, you can roll knocked-out caveman enemies and turn them into wrecking balls, clearing out enemies in your path. I thought that was amusing. The bosses are straightforward, with only a number of patterns to watch out for. Some of them are trickier than others, but overall, they were no trouble once I figured out the openings. That said, most of them were pretty memorable thanks to their over-the-top gimmicks, and the final boss gets extra props from me for having a couple of surprises. I quite like the art style of this game; the sprites have a distinct look to them that I found pleasing to the eye. VERDICT: It doesn't really reinvent the wheel in terms of mechanics and isn't all that difficult, but I still had a fun, if brief time with Congo's Caper. Despite being yet another caveman platformer, the game manages to stand out thanks to its presentation and quirky characters, though the game itself is pretty basic overall. It didn't blow my mind, but I got some enjoyment out of it, which is more than enough. This is another one of those games that are worth playing if you just want a chill platformer and don't want to stress yourself with a lengthy or overly difficult game. On the flip side, this is one of those games that likely won't do anything for you if you're looking for a challenge, unique mechanics, or a fresh new setting. - end -
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June 2024
Derryck
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