

It’s a little tougher to reach full speed, and the physics are a little more forgiving. While the game’s engine does have a certain feel that resembles the classic Sonic games, there are are a few subtle differences that give it its own feel. And in a particularly cool touch, two of the characters get exclusive levels that make use of their special abilities. Besides the difference they offer in gameplay, certain levels have routes that only a certain character can reach. An energy meter limits how often you can use these, although it recharges automatically pretty quickly. Lilac and Carol also get a few special moves that do a lot of damage and give invincibility, handy for certain bosses. They all get a variety of moves, with some, like Lilac’s divekick, working better for combat, while moves like Carol’s wall jump work better for exploration. The three characters are differentiated very well, and each one’s different enough that you’ll get a different experience trying each of them out. If you prefer to get right into the game, however, there’s a “Classic” mode that skips all the cutscenes entirely. The effort put into the story definitely shows, but it’s a bit too rough around the edges to really enjoy. Without spoiling anything, Lord Brevon does quite a few things your average platformer villain probably wouldn’t. There’s also a few scenes that, intentionally or otherwise, can be uncomfortable to watch. There’s a lot of characters who enter the story who don’t really do much before they leave, and there are a few plot points that aren’t really well explained. Unfortunately, the story is far from the game’s best feature. They’re all done in the game’s own engine, compete with full voice acting, which is a nice touch. The story is fairly complex for a platformer in this style, with a lot of cutscenes before and after each level. The moments when he appears are generally when the story gets its darkest. In a rather large departure from most platformer villians, he also carries a large machete with him. He’s also mutated most of the local wildlife to serve him. For the most part, he tends to stay in the shadows and manipulate the people around him to get things done for him. CharactersĪn alien warlord from a planet far away from Avalice, Brevon needs energy to repair his ship and resume his conquest of the universe. What they end up discovering will lead them right into adventure, many confrontations with Brevon’s reptilian henchman Serpentine, and a whole lot of pandas trying to kill them. Meanwhile, Lilac the water dragon and her friends are preparing for a trip to town, before a plane crash lands just ahead of them. With the prince as his puppet, Brevon plans to start a war that will leave the planet in chaos, while snatching up the Kingdom Stone, the planet’s sole source of energy, to power his ship. He quickly overtakes the royal palace with the help of his troops, decapitates the king right in front of his own son, and brainwashes the prince. The story takes place on the planet Avalice, where the evil alien Lord Brevon ends up crash landing after a space battle. So there’s definitely some Sonic in there, but you’ll also find a pinch of Ristar, some Mega Man X, a bit of inspiration from Rocket Knight Adventures, and even a little Gunstar Heroes, too. But Sonic’s just one piece of a mixture that combines several classic action game of the 16-bit era into something that stands out on its own. And to the developer’s credit, the influence has never been completely denied. Not to mention elemental shields, loop-de-loops, springs, and a very familiar, yet uniquely terrifying timer when you’re about to drown. The game uses an engine that previously powered a number of Sonic fangames, and you’ve got brightly colored animals moving at high speeds through colorful levels, tearing their way through mechanical enemies. It’s almost impossible to talk about this game with at least some comparison to Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog series. Freedom Planet is definitely an exception to this rule, and a great homage to an era of gaming not often covered.

They certainly exist, but you’re always more likely to find something that takes inspiration from games like Mega Man and Contra, as opposed to, say, Rocket Knight Adventures. And that’s all well and good, but when it comes to retro stylings, it always seems like the 16-bit era and beyond has always been tragically ignored. Often, however, a lot of these games will take their ideas from the games of generations past, particularly where the NES is concerned. Independent games tend to cover pretty much every sort of genre and inspiration one could possibly think of.
