The perfect word that comes to mind with TY 4 is the same word for the Rocket Knight reboot: Bittersweet.
If you are a die-hard fan, you'llThe perfect word that comes to mind with TY 4 is the same word for the Rocket Knight reboot: Bittersweet.
If you are a die-hard fan, you'll probably put up with this game's more glaring issues. This game is not bad; it's very derivative of the genre and mediocre as a result, which is sad because I am going to suggest some ideas that might have had better execution.
A Dimension Lost, Nothing Gained
Which leads me to my biggest problem of the game, there's nothing innovative of its gameplay to warrant a 2D return. There are no unique 2D mechanics or gameplay elements added in to Ty's formula. You still play the same character with the same glide and throw abilities, just in another dimension.
For some fans, that's enough to buy the game; for newcomers, it'll feel like a shallow experience and this game shouldn't be your first exposure to the series.
I don't want to keep mentioning Rayman, but I want to illustrate a point: When Rayman came back to 2D, they added in an ability he couldn't have in the 3D games, wall-running. Not only would that be a camera issue for 3D but it'd probably break the game as a result. In 2D, however, the mechanic was easily implemented in the level-design.
This game needed to do something similar. Either new mechanics or make Ty fit a new genre to make his 2D re-debut familiar and interesting to fans, and something worth playing for new players. And what confuses me is that they didn't make this game into a Metroidvania title.
Take, for example, the boomerang system. You are given three plot-specific boomerangs that are needed for the main-fetch quests (Fire, Ice and Shock). They are used to break down their opposite-elemental barrier or interact with an object, and even then they're more often for extra collectibles.
The only time this mechanic ever becomes interesting is when you use the Blizzard Rang to freeze a log on a waterfall to make a platform. The game needed more creative uses for these plot-boomerangs, as well as the other ones, if they wanted to make them more enjoyable.
Besides the given ones, there are also purchasable boomerangs (in-game purchases, not real) that give you some benefits. Some more useful than others, while others entirely useless.
You have four or five boomerangs for fighting. The Chaos Boomerang is my personal favorite as it explodes most annoying enemies and takes out multiple enemies with each throw. (It's also between Fire and Ice, which is easy to switch out.) Out of all of the bonus boomerangs, the Cryptic Boomerang is the only one you need to care about (if you want to 100% this game). It lets you find hidden platforms, which you cannot jump on without equipping them even if you know they are there.
All these boomerangs feel added in for flavoring, and you only need to buy them once. They're always in your inventory.
But imagine if the game had open-ended level-design on a 2D environment that required you to EARN those Boomerangs (like the Thundereggs in Ty 1) and then you needed to use those new boomerangs to unlock more with the rewards steadily getting better and more interesting. (Ex. Strider)
Or what if those extra boomerangs were purchasable and you could choose which ones you wanted and it'd shape your experience every time you played, and they had not one or two uses but influenced the bosses you fought or created new types of platforms as a result (i.e. the frozen log)? (Ex. Mega Man or Shovel Knight)
Or what if you had different playable characters (not skins for fans) that had unique abilities and the game required synergy between the team to get through tough obstacles or challenges, which could also be used to traverse the 2D open landscape? ((Ex. Castlevania 3)
All of these ideas are off the top of my head, and any one of them could've made this game more memorable or worth the transition.
A Platformer By Any Other Name
I wasn't expecting anything genre-breaking or the second coming from this game, but I expected something to keep me going besides my nostalgia alone.
The game is a platformer without real punishment. You have infinite lives, you can take multiple hits, you get tons of spawn-points, and there's not even a score-system for superficial punishment. The only thing you lose is time, and the game likes to pad itself out in that regards.
The levels are always "Do Something" three times as separate areas with meaningless side-objectives and extra collectibles for only bragging rights. The collectibles do not unlock anything special, and they're not required unless it's the main objective.
Boss-fights are unmemorable, and even the "one good boss fight" staple in Ty is not found in this game, especially with Cass's rotating room where you can't tell where you can stand and where you cannot.
I won't touch on the story because it makes no sense to someone who has played only the first game.
But that's about all you get.… Expand
