Now... this... looks like it could be preeeetttyyy fun! :D
Swedish studio Right Nice Games has teamed up with the folks at Grip Digital to bring you Adventure on Clover Island, a 3D action-platformer that’s wonderfully reminiscent of decade-old 64-bit greats like Jak and Daxter and Banjo-Kazooie. You play as Skylar, a feline heroine with a deadly mechanical arm. Her sidekick, Plux, is an owl that’s always flying by her side. And then there’s the lusciously vibrant world that you get to explore. It’s a welcome throwback to a genre that’s seen woefully few entries in recent years.
A beautiful place to have an adventure, the titular Clover Island is spread out beneath a bright, azure sky; a vast aquamarine sea surrounds its idyllic beaches. Everywhere you look, you’ll see a healthy supply of interesting rock formations, grassy outcroppings, and floating platforms to traverse, dotted with the sorts of shiny gems that we all love to compulsively collect (I know I do!).
The demo I played at this year’s Game Developers Conference ID@Xbox event started me out on the sandy beach, but I quickly made my way upward, toward an opening in the side of a rock face. Inside, I found a cave filled with spinning gears, disappearing platforms, and a few gauntlets that involved dodging some big, swinging hammers. The menacing, red-hot lava beneath me began to rise.
I easily punched my way through main villain CRT’s minions – little ambulatory TV screens and other droid-like creatures of his making – using Skylar’s spin attack to mop up any stragglers. Her mechanical arm is useful for more than destruction though; I attached a grappling line to anchor points floating in the air, which I used to swing across large gaps and pull out platforms that were previously retracted.
Skylar even has a jet pack, so she can hover and fly for short bursts, adding an extra layer of satisfaction and utility to the genre-staple double-jump. Just with my brief hands-on time with the game, I’m already eager to see how Skylar upgrades her mechanical arm (and associated abilities) as the game progresses.
If zippy platforming action in colorful vistas has been missing from your life, Adventure on Clover Island is one to watch for when it releases later this year on Xbox One. - Alice Liang