After his exploits in the previous BIT.TRIP games Commander Video is back to running in everyone’s favourite retro themed series and now available on the PC. To try and describe the madness of the plot is somewhat pointless but we can say it’s something to do with our hero crashing his spaceship in a strange place and then deciding to run a lot.
Unlike
previous entries into the BIT.TRIP series, Runner 2 is no longer 8-bit styled
in terms of how it looks. The stages are now rendered in a glorious array of
crystal clear colours and everything is also much bigger on screen. There are
still retro looking levels to be unlocked but the majority of the time you will
be screaming along at breakneck speed in a more HD friendly landscape.
Gameplay
is based on a fairly simple concept. You start at one end of the course and run
continuously to the other. Players have no control over Commander Video’s
running and he continues on until you reach the end of the stage or crash into
something.
As you
run along different types of obstacles will appear which need to be negotiated.
This starts out with players simply needing to jump over things but, on an
almost level by level basis, the obstacle count increases and thus, so do the
moves needed to get past them. Soon
you’ll be locked in a rhythm of jumping, sliding, kicking, spinning and dancing
in order to reach the end of each course.
As well
as avoiding obstacles you also need to pick up the gold bars that are in each
course. There are normally between thirty to sixty gold bars in each level and
collecting them all triggers the chance to get bonus points by Commander Video
being fired, head first, into a target at the end of the course. If you think
the course is too easy you can also jump over the mid-point checkpoint to put
the game into challenge mode for even more points. Still not enough? Then you
can spend your fleeting free moments making our hero dance to gain even more
points. The score attack aspect of Runner 2 is here to stay for a very long
time.
Once you
master that even more moves are introduced and everything keeps getting more
hectic to the point it all begins to blur into a state you aren’t quite sure
the human brain should be able to deal with. It’s at moments like this that you
realise where the ‘rhythm’ part of the title comes from. Perhaps deceptively,
Runner 2 is not really in the same category as endless runners such as
Canabalt. It should really be grouped with games like Frequency, Parappa the
Rappa and is perhaps most similar to Vib-Ribbon.
Courses
are also deceptively packed with things to find and navigate. Many of them have
multiple routes with some leading to hidden objects such as new costumes, while
others will take you to a different exit. This in turn will lead you to hidden
levels or the much sought after ‘Key Vault’. Conquering the Key Vault will then
open up even more routes and collectables in the courses found in that
world.
An array
of map icons is present for each course to help keep track of your progress with
the ultimate goal to have each level completed, with all collectables found,
the bonus bull’s eye hit at the end of the course and the mid-point checkpoint
jumped so the game goes into challenge mode. Levels get hectic very early on so
it’s a relief to find that each course gives you infinite lives to get through
it. When you hit something you will move back to the last checkpoint and lose
any points or objects you have acquired. The unlockable retro levels remain
hardcore and give you three lives with which to navigate them.
The game
can still be maddeningly frustrating at times as once you lose your rhythm in a
level it can be near impossible to get back. You will persevere though as
everything is fair and each collision results in a lack of skill from the
player or in the fact you haven’t reacted to something quickly enough. Learning
each level does come into play but we rarely came up against the sort of
‘memory test’ gaming with objects you had no way of avoiding first time that
games like Donkey Kong Country used to employ. Just one thing though – do make
sure you are playing with a gamepad as the keyboard controls are a bit tricky.
Overall,
it’s easy to recommend Runner 2 on any system. It fits nicely onto Steam among
the other high profile indie games and is the perfect game for PC gamers to take
short blasts at on their lunch break. The charm and fun present are not easily
found elsewhere and it’s great to see something which sets itself out as a pure
gaming experience without the pretentious overtures that many bigger budget
games now have. It’s both something old and something new and you should stop reading
now and go and buy it.
8/10
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