Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series (Nintendo Switch) Review

Included in Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series are the first PS1 outing (which was also released for Wii) and the PS2 sequel. No bells and whistles here, these are straight remasters with a lick of paint. For better or worse all the old gripes (if any did particularly gripe) will be found here but also, so will all the little things that made these games so great the first time around. Bandai Namco could certainly have added a lot more in terms of the package in order to sway the cult fanbase as with the excellent Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Cowabunga Collection recently. A few museum pieces would of really elevated the package however here all you get is the choice to play either game. It's a massive let down and an insult to the quality of titles that are on offer.

Why such a massive insult I hear you scream? Well, the actual games are fantastic fun and a real snapshot of the quality that was being pumped out in the 90's. Gameplay is simple with protagonist Klonoa moving thorough bright and beautiful 2.5 3D stages dispatching enemies with the standard jump but also the wind bullet ability, allowing our floppy eared hero to turn anyone in his way into a balloon sized projectile or platform. It's an easy to use mechanic but as with most games of the time, difficult to master.

For all the relaxing looks of both titles, playing through, can as times be pretty difficult. This is mostly due to the hit detection between modes. Cursed with being older and more aware of these things than a 12 year old, its noticeable as a really cheap and nasty tactic to adjust the curve of trickiness. The harder the difficulty chosen, the harder to connect with the wind bullet. All jumps and boss battles throughout seem incredibly fair and fun, but this issue can really stifle a good gameplay session. More than one life has been lost getting that little bit too close due to the bullet ability just not connecting and on higher difficulties unlocked after a playthrough, it's even more prevalent. The remaster cannot be blamed for this as its always been there however as with the inclusion of some kind of extra content, is certainly something that should have been looked at before shipping this one out (not in a steel book or at an £11.99 price point).

As mentioned, the games can be replayed in the harder modes but for the casual player (which old platformers should always appeal to), there is still enough to come back to in terms of collecting all gems and puzzle pieces throughout every level. If that doesn't tickle your pickle though, a blast will still be had simply getting from point A to point credits.