With great muffin comes great responsibility.
Let me get this mention out of the way quickly, Muffin Knight has taken a lot of flack since it’s release for its glaring similarities to the free independent game Super Crate Box, which was released last year on PC and Mac and is due soon on Mobile. The core gameplay is practically identical and levels are the same as are many of the weapons. That said, just because something is derivative of another product doesn’t mean that it isn’t worthy of its own review and praise for its merits, much like the whole tower defense sub genre, as long as it isn’t deemed as original.
The world of Muffin Knight is a world made up of six small (almost single screen) levels that slowly fill up with enemies as you run around to collect muffins. These enemies drop down from the top of the screen and should they find their way off the bottom then they’ll re-appear at the top along with all the other creatures, but they’ll be faster and tougher to kill. You’ll have to constantly trim back the enemy forces to prevent yourself from getting overwhelmed. This alone is a fine mechanic for a game but what really mixes things up is that every time a muffin is collected you’ll switched randomly to an unlocked character, of which there are fifteen in total. The different characters bring a lot of charm into Muffin Knight with characters like Ninja Kitty and the rainbow pooping Unicorn.
The art style of the characters is big and cheerful, just like the rest of the game’s fairy tale art style. While each of the characters control the same and the gnome jumps just as high as the bird, they do have vastly different weapons. The monkey’s banana flies back like a boomerang, Mr Rainbow fires a brightly colored smart bomb and the Zombie heaves his guts up with a delightfully disturbing sound. These weapons also vary greatly in usefulness and after switching to a less powerful character you might have to make a quick path to the next muffin to be able to easily kill the enemies on the screen.
Killing creatures earns you XP which will level you up and allow you to upgrade any of the characters to improve their attacks in some way. Upgrades can also be made to your life so you can withstand a single hit or two and you can also purchase powers that can be chosen at the start of the level and they grant you abilities such as slowing down time, jumping on enemies heads or double jumping. Technically the game controls well with it’s simple on screen arrow buttons on one side and action buttons on the other. The performance is generally good although there are some problems when first loading up new characters after grabbing a muffin, as if they’re not being pre-loaded when the level begins. Also included is a multiplayer co-op allowing local only play across iOS and Android, however I have not had a chance to test this feature.
Say what you will about Muffin Knight’s roots, it still exists in its own charming world with charming graphics, music and a few new features in its own right. Unlocking new skills is worthwhile and it’ll drive you to continue to complete levels over and gain a higher score so you can make your team better, so you can return again and get an even higher score. It might not have too many levels to see but what’s there is solid and enjoyable.
[rating:4]
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