Cloudberry Kingdom
Does that screenshot above scare you to death? Platforming hell? Welcome to the crazy challenge that is Cloudberry Kingdom…
Cloudberry Kingdom is a 2D timing based platformer crammed full of short levels lasting from 10 seconds to around a minute. The challenge is to traverse from one door to another. It starts so simply. A jump here, a bounce there, a dodge down there and maybe a pause for a laser beam to turn off. Then as the levels keep coming suddenly the obstacles grow, and grow and grow to the point of sheer lunacy! The level fades up and you look at what’s ahead of you and you actually say aloud “What. On. Earth!” Then you charge at it. This is what makes the game absolutely spellbinding.
Cloudberry Kingdom’s levels run within a pattern, so the platforms all move together, the lasers turn on and off in a pattern and everything is timed to perfection so that as soon as the level starts, you can essentially charge full speed ahead and wrestle each level to the ground. It’s similar in some ways to the infinite runner genre in this respect but it’s been kitted out to the extreme. The timing and noticing how every single obstacle is interconnected is key to conquering Cloudberry and once you’ve worked it out, yes you will still die an awful lot, but you’ll blame yourself – not the crazy difficulty level.
One of the beautiful gameplay twists is that every 10 to 20 levels an element of the gameplay mechanics changes. You’ll have sections tied to a rolling boulder, to a bouncing pogo and with a booster thruster – there’s plenty of tweaks available. These tweaks change how you then attack each level and keeps the game fresh. Also keeping it fresh is local co-op with up to four players effortlessly playing together. It’s more about collective survival instead of scoring by collecting gems which is a missed trick but understandable due to how much is going on at once.
Positives
~Perfectly timed gameplay mechanics are beautiful and daunting to watch and play at the same time
- Excellent soundtrack
- 4 play co-op is fun for comical deaths
- Constantly switching up the mechanics
Negatives
- Lives up to the hype as being a platforming beast – if you’re looking for a soft challenge – you have been warned!!!
Conclusion
I have loved every death of Cloudberry Kingdom. It’s a fantastic blend of going crazy and understanding patterns to help you succeed. Everyone whom claims new platform games do not pose much of a challenge – here you go – knock yourself out!
