Basically it's a plateformer. Where you can't jump but your vertical movement is controlled with pinball flips. And it's on a single map, with a few upgrades and a bunch of secrets, which means it leans toward a metroidcania. With that in mind, it's probably the best game that could be made. The world is nice. Difficulty is just right for the main adventure, with a few harder side secrets. There's a lot of secrets, but not too many that it becomes a chore to find them : it's a game where a reasonnable player can consider going for the 100%. The game adds new gameplay elements regulary, without never breaking the original feel. Controls are efficient (I played with a controler and I can really recommand it, controlling the flips with the side triggers is perfect. Can't vouch for a keyboard control). No real death or fail state, you can always try again. The game is not very long but it's perfect for me, I'm tired of games trying too hard to add stuff and end up boring - it's dense and packed with stuff. A few negative, but I'm really trying to find them now. Backtracking after endgame to find secrets can be a bit confusing and feel empty - but, hey, at this point you're asking for it and it's really minor. One of the late game upgrade controls can be a bit hard to grasp at first. er. I guess some might think it's a bit short ? A bit easy ? That's about it. Nothing that can hinder the joy I had with this game. I was amazed, seeing the credits, that it's a tiny team that made this game, it has the polish and value of the great studios. If you enjoy plateformers, if you're looking for something unique, play this game, it's more than worth your time.
It's short, it's pretty, it's not challenging. It's slow. A lineat journey in an empty world, post apocalyptic I guess. The atmosphere is good, it feels like a cheap version of Inside, without the scary parts and the feels. It's hard to say it's "bad" but it's very short and doesn't go very far in its premise. No choices, no secret things, no explainations about anything. Just that weird machine you pilot (with interesting controls, you move your plateforming character inside your "ship" to press buttons to do stuff) to the end, with a couple upgrades on the way. I had a hard time feeling invested in the adventure. It felt a bit shallow in the end.
There is nothing revolutionary here. No "unique" mechanism, no huge difficulty in plateforming or combat. No insanely difficult secrets to find. Don't look here for an ambitious new take on the genre. But if you want a plateformer with good controls, short levels geting slightly longer as you progress, new stuff added at each level (a good roaster of new ennemies, new blocks, new items to interact with...), and an amazing art style, there is really nothing wrong in this game. It does everything a classic 2D plateformer should do, with style and charm, and a great attention to detail. Well, maybe it tries a bit too hard at times to have "everything" (plateforming, with combat, with collectibles, with costumes, with boss fights, with XP, with a pet stone sidekick, with a giraffe, with health potions, with "funny" dialogues and characters...), but the flow is still very pleasant and doesn't feel cluttered by all that. In the end, it might not be an unforgettable game, but it's hard to fin anything that game does wrong. If the description suits you, and you want a good plateformer on the easy side ? Adventure Pals is right for you. I know I had great fun with it.
