Developer: WayForward
Publisher: Capcom
Rrp: £11.99
Released: 13th August 2013
Available on Steam
I have fond memories of going to my friends house and playing DuckTales on his NES back in the early nineties. Sadly I don’t remember much of the original game save that I found it pretty hard. This time around though I found it to be very easy. I can’t be sure if it’s because the game is easier than it was when it was first released, or that if it’s as difficult as it ever was and that I have gotten more skilled (I’m hoping its this).
Either way it was a welcome return to reprising the role as the richest Duck in the world and play as Scrooge McDuck.
The platforming is simplistic with no fancy mechanics to muddy the waters. If you can see a ledge there is generally a way to get to it. That’s not to say it’s not without its challenges, though most of these challenges usually involve trying to work out how to get to a treasure chest. On the whole the gameplay is solid but repetitive jump, pogo, bounce on head, rinse and repeat.
The character animations are smooth, and the backgrounds are detailed but also simultaneously uncluttered, never distracting the player from the task at hand.
Infuriatingly there isn’t an option to either turn off or turn down the music and sound effects, which seems like such a strange thing to be missing and irked me somewhat.
Each level, save for the final one, contains a secret which if found can make the game easier by increasing your health bar. Once you’ve completed a level the amount of money you’ve collected is counted and a reward added.
You can unlock artwork for the game through the extras option in the main menu or, once you’re past the tutorial section, in Scrooges office. You unlock these by spending the money you collect throughout the game.
I recommend this game BUT I would never pay full price for it. The whole thing, save for the unlocking of artwork, can be completed in about three hours. If you can get it on an offer around say £5 then its worth it, any more than that and I would say its a waste of money.
