Basic Information
- Title: Maki’s Adventure
- Developer: Zoroarts
- Publisher: Zoroarts
- Genre: 2D Platformer, Adventure
- Platform(s): Steam/Itch.io,
Android (Planned), Nintendo Switch (Planned) - Players: Single-Player Only
- Price: TBD
- Review Copy: Not supplied. Free Demo
- Review Platform: PC, (Steam)
- Total Play Time: 1 Hour
Intro:
Maki’s Adventure is a 2D platformer developed by a sole developer. While the game is to be fully released in December, there is a demo available on Steam for free at the moment. The total demo is roughly 30 minutes to 1 hour of content.
I enjoyed the short time I experienced the game and would recommend it to fans of pixel art games.
Gameplay
Controls: 7/10
– Combat is solid and platforming feels quite nice, although the hitboxes could use some work
Quests, Progression, Story: 6/10
– At this stage mainly fetch quests, the story is okay, though that will likely be fleshed out in the main game
Enjoyability: 8/10
– While I’m not usually much for 2D platformers, I found myself having a great time with Maki’s Adventure
You’ll start your adventure from the inside of a beautiful old cell
Maki’s Adventure is fully compatible with both a mouse and keyboard and a controller. Those of you that enjoy couch gameplay will be at ease on this one. The overall gameplay is quite typical of 2D platformers. Over the course of the demo you will control Maki through a dungeon where he has presumably been locked away. You will learn how to move, dodge-roll and also get a taste of the early combat in the game. Without spoiling too much, you will unlock a weapon and get hacking in this demo which includes 2 boss fights.
As you move around the world you can also interact with many strange characters. These characters will give you quests which at this point are just limited to fetch quests in exchange for either progression or in-game currency. The gameplay feel quite nice. The platforming works quite well and the combat feels very satisfying. Although I did have a bit of an issue with the hitboxes. It seems everyone’s hitboxes are quite a bit larger than their sprites. Although this does come in handy for the boss fights I found it particularly difficult against the spear skeleton enemies.
The full demo will last the player anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour. The full release of the game is planned to include 7-8 hours of content including side-quests for the player to go on and mini-games to play. There was one darts mini-game included in the demo of the game which was genuinely a nice change of pace. I am a sucker for a good mini-game…
The one gripe I did have was with some hit detection. Particularly when trying to navigate the rail-car section of the game. Although that could also just be partly blamed on some rusty platforming skills.
Graphics & Design
World Design: 9/10
– Dungeon is well thought out and makes you long for fresh air
Characters & Objects: 9/10
– Yet another strong point for the game. Character’s are enjoyable, unique and bring a lot to the experience
UI and Menus: 8/10
– All of the menus have a great theme that fits quite well with the game. The text boxes my favorite!
The first level of Maki’s Dungeon is a beautiful pixel art expereience. Obviously if you aren’t much for the pixel art style of games then this one is not going to be for you. But for those of us that do enjoy it, the game’s level and character design make for a truly enjoyable experience. The dungeon has this dark, claustrophobic feel to it that makes you need for sunshine. There is a variety of different liquids, effects and rooms as well. The levels are very well though out and nicely designed.
The characters are another shining trait in this indie title. There are a pretty large variety of different characters to interact with in this short demo. The characters are quite interesting an all have their own little piece of backstory and lore. You will find yourself doing short fetch quests for some of them and its nice to see their reactions to the player.
The enemies also look very unique while fitting to the overall theme of the level. The boss fights feel very intense and the characters have this aura of strength surrounding them. The skeletons, whilst being a staple in a lot of different adventure/rpg games, have their own unique vibe in Maki’s Adventure and are also well designed.
Sound
Voice Acting: 3/10
– The opening sequence could use more professional audio editing
Music & Ambiance: 3/10
– The ambient effects are nice but the music track falls a little short
Sound Effects: 6/10
– Most of the sound effects sound like a Capella rather than actual effects
When I say that I really enjoyed most of my time playing Maki’s Adventure, the exception would have to be the sound design. Overall the effects are quite nice. Hitting the enemies sounds like it should and the sound design during boss fight sequences really adds to the intensity. That being said, my gripes with the sound design start right from the beginning.
When you start a new game you are greeted with an opening cut-scene, introducing you to a bit of the backstory to the game. While it is great that the cut-scene is narrated, the quality of the recording is somewhat lacking. It sounds as though somebody recorded the sound through a headset microphone. As the game is not released yet, I am not too critical of these things but that being said, it is a place that could be improved.
The sound track when exploring the world unfortunately sounds like somebody’s cat hat taken a walk across their MIDI controller. One redeeming factor about the music is that the levels can be turned down irrespective of the sound effects volume.
The walking, interacting, jumping and combat sound effects are all quite good in comparison. They sound a lot more like they would fir the game. The one part where this didn’t sound so great for me was in a section where the player must platform over a rail-car system. The rail-car is clearly ‘voiced’ by a person intimidating a train sound. While it did provide a nice laugh, there has to be some points deducted on that front.
Summary
Totals
Gameplay: 21.5/30
Graphics: 26/30
Sound: 12/30
Overall
59.5/90
While Maki’s Adventure shines as a beautiful pixel art adventure, the game is unfortunately held back by the average sound quality. That being said this is just an early demo of the game, not the final product.
The demo was successful as it left me genuinely wanting to play more of the game. Once the game does release, I am looking forward to getting back into it and exploring the rest of what this solo developer has to offer! Personally I am very excited to see the different level design and original characters that will be thought of next. I will more than likely be picking up a copy of Maki’s Adventure when it releases in December and am looking forward to unlocking all of the different types of shark!
You can wish-list and demo the game on Steam to keep up with the latest news, and check out the game’s website, and follow the developer Zoroarts on Twitter here.