After his exploits in the previous BIT.TRIP games Commander
Video is back to running in everyone’s favourite retro themed series. 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 higher
resolution 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.
Overall, it’s easy to recommend Runner 2 on any system. On
the Vita it provides a perfect slice of pick up and play action (even if it can
get a little confusing at times). 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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