Balan Wonderworld
Release Date: March 26, 2021
Arcade, TPP, 3D platformers, for 2 players, co-op, action adventure, splitscreen, multiplayer, singleplayer
OpenCritic
A three-dimensional platformer from the creators of Sonic the Hedgehog and NiGHTS Into Dreams. We follow the maestro Balan into a fairytale land, facing platforming challenges and enemies and using the power of special outfits.
Balan Wonderworld is a three-dimensional platformer from Square Enix. The game is the debut of Balan Company, a new studio of the publisher. The team was led by Yuji Naka and Naoto Oshima, creators of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. They both recently worked together on the cult NiGHTS Into Dreams, which has a lot in common with Balan Wonderland.
Plot
Balan Wonderworldtells the story of two heroes: Emmy and Leo. Both of them are in their own anxious thoughts when they find the building housing the Wonderland. It soon turns out that this is not an ordinary amusement park, but a huge, fairy-tale world. Led by the mysterious Balan, Emma and Leo go on a journey to heal the hearts and minds of the land's inhabitants. Both of them will also discover what really matters to them. The history of this journey is presented in twelve minor stories dedicated to the fate of a group of people.
Mechanics
Balan Wonderworld brings to mind other 3D platformers like Super Mario Odyssey and NiGHTS Into Dreams. So we have a three-dimensional environment filled with platforms, obstacles, enemies and simple puzzles. We can find here amusement parks, surreal chessboards, ice tundra and many other locations, each with unique mechanics.
It's not enough just to run and jump to get to overcome the challenges of the following levels. In the game you will find over 80 costumes, which will give your characters special abilities. This includes walking in the air, stopping time and being able to manipulate objects in many ways. These and other skills are also useful in the fight against bosses.
Technical aspects
In technical terms, Balan Wonderworld is not inferior to competing platformers. Three-dimensional graphics maintain the distinctive style of Naoto Oshima, known for example from NiGHTS Into Dreams.
Videos and Screens
[2:28] Balan Wonderworld trailer #1
Metro GameCentral: 4 / 10
A slightly embarrassing attempt to recall the early days of 3D platforming, with a central gimmick that never really captures the imagination and clunky controls and gameplay.
VGC: 2 / 5 by Chris Scullion
For better or worse, Balan Wonderworld feels like an HD take on a PS2-era platformer. As long as you manage your expectations accordingly and accept the limitations that come with this, there's some enjoyment to be had with it. By modern standards, however, the game falls far short of expectations.
Nintendo Life: 3 / 10 by Mitch Vogel
We're not going to mince words here, Balan Wonderworld is a waste of your time. Monotonous level design, awful performance, and shallow gameplay combine to make for an experience that is simply not fun to play. It may look pretty (when it's framerate isn't chugging), but there simply isn't enough good content here to justify your time or money, and this is doubly true when you take into account that this is a full-priced retail release. If you're looking for a good 3D platformer for your Switch, this most definitely isn't it.
Balan Wonderworld Summary
Platforms:
PC Windows
PlayStation 4
Xbox One
Nintendo Switch
PlayStation 5
Xbox Series X/S
Developer: Balan Company / Arzest (PC) / Arzest (PS4) / Arzest (XONE) / Arzest (Switch) / Arzest (PS5) / Arzest (XSX)
Publisher: Square Enix
Balan Wonderworld System Requirements
PC / Windows
Minimum: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0 GHz / AMD Ryzen 3 1200 3.1 GHz, 8 GB RAM, graphic card 2 GB GeForce GTX 760 / Radeon R9 270X or better, 20 GB HDD, Windows 8.1/10 64-bit
Recommended: Intel Core i5-6400 2.7 GHz / AMD Ryzen 5 1400 3.2 GHz, 16 GB RAM, graphic card 3 GB GeForce GTX 1060 / 4 GB Radeon RX 480 or better, 20 GB HDD, Windows 10 64-bit
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