Penny's Big Breakaway

Penny’s Big Breakaway is a delightful breath of fresh air for the 3D platforming genre. It doesn’t just feel like a love letter to Sonic, but rather a number of mascot platformers from back in the day that captured our hearts. There are a few issues here and there, but for a first official release in 3D platforming from Evening Star, it’s a great start, featuring a massive collection of beautiful levels, solid mechanics and gimmicks, and a soundtrack that keeps the vibes charming throughout. There’s a lot to enjoy here, and I hope it’s just the start of things to come for Evening Star, Penny, and the world of Macaroon.

A throwback platformer that feels innovative rather than derivative, Penny’s world and joyous movement is infectious. You’ll be back for another spin. [Issue#39, p.84]

Penny’s Big Breakaway is a challenging, yep, approachable 3d platformer with bags of old-school charm, slick level design, and top-tier platforming that both fans of a certain blue hedgehog and 3d platformers in general should certainly check out.

Penny’s Big Breakaway might be a bit unrefined, but behind the occasional bugs and argumentative camera is one of the best momentum-based 3D platformers I’ve ever played, with unique movement mechanics that rival Sonic at his absolute best.

Penny's Big Breakaway is a melting pot of fresh ideas and slow-cooked nostalgia that'll caress the palate of the speedrunners and score-chasers out there, while potentially cooling a little thanks to some technical flubs and awkward controls. If you've got a hunger for Saturn and Dreamcast-era 3D platformers you'll be more than satiated here.

Penny’s Big Breakaway manages to create an enjoyable platforming experience, despite some glaring flaws. As a package there’s still plenty of entertainment to be had, a handful of cutscenes do a solid job of telling the tale and a banging soundtrack nicely backs the colour on screen. It does lose some of its magic towards the end, when all the creative ideas run low its the boss battles that carry it through, but despite my worst frustrations I still had a fun time here. It’s an experience I wish had a bigger backing, maybe some voice overs or a bolder overarching story to Penny’s adventure. Ultimately, Evening Star’s debut doesn’t hit my lofty expectations, but if colourful worlds and a bit of old-school shenanigans are your thing, you’d do well to give Penny and her sentient yo-yo a crack.

Penny’s Big Breakaway is big on ambition, for a studio the size of Evening Star they have turned in a title that is a cut above the 3D action adventure norm, most of the time. At its best, Penny’s is vibrant, colourful and packed with imaginative ideas and mechanics. The use of momentum feels natural and the level design feels intuitive. The overall presentation is excellent and is backed by a banging soundtrack that brings the game to life. That said, there are moments where Penny’s Big Breakway crosses the threshold from difficult/tricky and into frustrating territory. Whilst not bad enough or frequent enough to ruin the experience, it did create moments where I felt I needed to put the controller down and take a break. Overall though, in a genre flooded with competitors, if you are looking for something different, Penny’s Big Breakaway could be just the ticket.

It has some issues that can frustrate, mechanically it can take some getting used to, and it could do with a patch or two to clear up some unfortunate bugs, but Penny’s Big Breakaway has a lot of charm which sees it pull through the other side. If you’re a fan of 3D platformers, especially those with unique quirks and gimmicks, chances are you’ll absolutely love what Penny’s Big Breakaway has to offer. It’s certainly a solid debut from Evening Star, and we can’t wait to see what the studio does next.

Wielding enough creativity and originality in its approach, Penny's Big Breakaway is a classic case of the good of its premise outmatching the occasional bad of its execution. As annoying the technical state in parts is, let alone some of the misjudged application of additional, incentivizing challenge runs a greater risk of putting players off entirely. Even so, flawed and lacking a touch of polish it may be, Evening Star have done well establishing a new IP that is not only reminiscent of past years, but eagerly wants to build something new out of it. What it ends up creating may not be the most fluid or immediately-enticing take on traversal, but Penny's Big Breakaway is a small, but promising start crammed full of fresh ideas and endearing style alike.

So, Penny's Big Breakaway is a flawed gem in the end. Once you're comfortable with the controls, the fundamental gameplay works very nicely indeed, and there are some fantastic levels (especially in the latter half) which really accentuate this game's unique ideas. It's a shame it's launched with some unusual bugs, as they take the shine off of an imaginative 3D platformer with lots of potential. Hopefully, after a few updates, this promising debut from Evening Star will please the crowds with a tighter performance.

Penny’s Big Breakaway shows promise, but it’s bogged down by long stages, smudgy-looking backgrounds, a lack of camera movement, and finicky controls. The yo-yo antics of our heroine felt great and looked cool when I could pull them off, but more often than not, I found myself back at the checkpoint or having to redo a part of the level. I was really hoping for more magic from the former Sonic Mania team. With a little more polish, this feels like it could be a great addition to the 3D platforming genre.