Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom Reviews

Very good and fun game, I highly recommend this game.

Overall a pretty good Metroidvania/platformer, especially in a year where there hasn't been any major releases for the genre yet. + Amazing graphic and sound design; music is great, enemies and animations are expressive, and everything feels very well synchronized into a nostalgic cartoon aesthetic + Gameplay feels smooth; equipment is balanced (with several sets still being relevant even in the endgame), each form feels unique and powerful, and they all have niches that they fill even once you have them all + Lots of things to do in the endgame, with plenty of treasures to find, puzzles to solve, and more (to be fair, some of the puzzles are difficult and some ways to get into places are unclear, even with all abilities unlocked so using a walkthrough is recommended) + Overall, the game does an amazing job at keeping people (or at least me) interested in almost every aspect + Game is also not too difficult but not too easy at the same time; a perfect mix of tough enemies and bosses, with breaks in between for platforming and exploration My ONLY complaint about this game (and it's a very small one at that) is that the endgame can feel grindy sometimes, especially when you're trying to find those last few chests (for context they have a merchant who you can pay to reveal chest locations). However, there's an easy AFK farm in the Guides section (on Steam) and an easy money farm in the Graveyard area where you can farm enough for a chest in about 2 minutes. Overall the game gets a 10/10, not only because it's amazing, but it's also a great callback to older metroidvanias and definitely something to scratch the metroidvania itch if you're bored.

This game doesn't deserve an 88%. It's somewhat competent but it's one of the worst Metroidvanias I've played and I've played many. Environmental damage seems to be turned way up which leads to you losing a bazillion hearts to one hit. It's also cartoony and clunky to the point where it feels like a polished browser game. I guess people were just really desperate for anything when this came out. It's not even close to games like Hollow Knight, Luna Nights, The Messenger, or Blasphemous. Go play any of those instead and if you've played them all then skip this one anyways. You're out of your mind if you think this is a must-play.

When I was growing up, one of my favourite games was Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap (Sega Master System), and I love the Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap remake, which was so lovingly done with beautiful art and music, but (and partly because of this) I have mixed feelings about Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom. Monster Boy isn't as good or as fun as Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap, and it has pacing and difficulty curve issues. It also fails to take account of the fact that OG Wonder Boy gamers from the 80s, who are no doubt a major part of their demographic, don't have the reflexes of a teenager anymore! (The volcano area gave me a lot of grief). I liked the different animal forms, including the puzzles which require use of more than one form, though I wish you could use magic in all forms rather than just the pig and human ones. I also rarely used the snake and pig forms once I had something better. I wish all the forms could use magic. I did complete it (all bar one achievement), but I probably won't go back to it, I'm more likely to re-visit Ori and the blind forest, Ori and the will of the wisps or Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap.

It's just screen after screen overtuned reflex, vision, and manual dexterity tests. It starts out fun then you start the real game, and the difficulty spikes through the roof. Usually these kinds of puzzles are scattered throughout games, not just standard every room. I don't mind frustrating puzzles to get hidden items and such. Graphically the game is gorgeous, and runs smooth as hell even at 360 fps. I would have most likely loved this in my teens, but my platforming skills aren't what they used to be when it comes to brutal timing puzzles. Metroidvania games are always hit or miss in this regard. This one just prompted me to write this review because it went from fun and relaxing right into making me feel like I'd rather eat metal shards than to keep playing. More and more "classic" inspired games seem to forgetting that some players from the classic era are getting old, and seem to be making 80's and 90's games aimed solely at people born after 2010. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Changing my review to recommended, but not deleting my previous text, because this is actually a good game, despite the fact my fingers get tied in knots playing it. As you open up new abilities, the difficulty eases, and it feels more fun. So far I've avoided getting soft locked, but this still is one of the hardest platformers I've played in a long time.

I really enjoyed the game. The art style is fun and colorful, and the transformations wear fun and had some fun abilities to mess around with. Sometimes i felt like the platforming or puzzles could be very demanding and take a lot longer because things where not perfectly lined up. There are some that also puzzles felt impossible to do without a walk through, but the majority felt fun and even if I needed a walk through I did really enjoy the game, especially after getting the lion form. Defiantly recommend but don't be afraid to look up answers if your having hard time.

[h1]Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom[/h1] [h3]Absolute gem of a metroidvania genre: colourful, engaging, flexible and memorable.[/h3] Review after 100% I haven’t played previous entries of the Wonder boy series, and frankly, never heard about them. Yet, after finishing this game, I went on Youtube to watch some full walkthroughs of the 80’s and 90’s titles, and I couldn’t help, but notice how thoroughly and accurately did the [b]Game Atelier[/b] transfer the systems, enemies and the general tone of the previous games into this new project, and improved upon those. [i]Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom[/i] is the best standalone metroidvania I’ve ever played to date. It is a blend of unique mechanics, cheerful music and hand drawn graphics. The game’s main gimmick is the switching between different animal forms, each having some unique abilities that interact with the game’s world as well as enemies. Besides that, you have an equipment system, with different items providing various abilities and the sets of items that give some additional bonus. The game also has magic, and each spell contributes to even more interactions with the world of the Cursed Kingdom. Locations are distinct, the enemies are interesting and each boss represents a unique puzzle-battle. Like any good metroidvania, [i]Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom[/i] features a fine amount of puzzles and platforming elements both mandatory and optional. I’ve received a great pleasure beating the game, however, there were some minor details, upon which the developers could have improved. First is pacing. Initial 2 hours of gameplay of the game released on Steam are crucial. And [i]Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom[/i] fumbled it hard. Your first beast form is the most uninspiring and limited out of all the rest, and you don’t get another form up until 2-3 hours in. Secondly – the inability to “look down” using the right stick. That’s an essential and basic feature of any self-respecting 2D platformer/metroidvania, and seeing the lack of it here was surprising. The third issues follows the second – inability to jump straightly down the platform, by pointing down + pressing the button. Again, a basic feature. The other minor issue is the incorrect depiction of the rooms. It is hard to know, where the passage to a highlighted room (after you bought a treasure map) with a treasure can possibly be. Sometimes the entrance is like 5 rooms away. The last thing is the 2 types of checkpoints -- one is a regular type of check points, and the second one (one per biom) which acts additionally as a healing fountain/teleporter. I hate when metroidvanias do this. To me it feels artficial and unnecessary, somewhat spoiling the experience. Despite all the minor inconveniences and some surprisingly difficult challenges, [i]Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom[/i] is simply great, if you give it a chance past the first 2-3 hours. 9/10, recommend.

Apparently and unbeknownst to me, Monster Boy is some sort of series. I'm not sure what kind of series, but it is something that has existed somewhere. I was initially hesitant on this game because it immediately felt like I might be too old for it, or the cartoony art style was geared more towards a younger audience. 30 hours and 100% completion later - this game OWNS. The music SLAPS. Bosses were very easy, some I one-shot and others I maxed out at maybe 3 or so attempts. But it is truly an incredible game and was a pleasure to fully complete. The progression and metroidvania-style unlocks were paced skillfully, and the abilities of each unlocked form for use in puzzles, sometimes combined puzzles, was awesome at every turn. The zones were unique, and gearing for each zone offered additional twists in gameplay. If I had any small gripe, it may be with the pig form. The game introduces you to the pig form early, and gives you an indicator to know when to use the form to unveil secrets. I made it through about 90% of the game/map without a guide, but the last 10% had a lot of secrets hidden behind the unique ability of the pig form. This would normally be fine, but you were trained to look for a certain indicator to use the pig in early game, but the last run of secrets didn't have the same indicators. If they did, I couldn't see them. Also, the last secret area for the remaining 1% of the map was hidden behind a series of events that I did not see any solution or even hint for anywhere in the game. Game is a must for metroidvania fans. I loved it.

this was a really really well made and polished game. At the very start it felt easy and i thought the combat was a joke, but after a couple of hours i was hooked. Nice art, fun gameplay with many characters each unique and has their uses depending on the puzzle you are solving, and yes there are a lots of puzzles. each environment feels distinct, enough so that i enjoyed the 30 hours playing the game. it says i had 82% completion when i beat the final boss, i might go back and finish the rest of the puzzles or i might not. I totally recommend this game

I had a lot of fun playing this game. the level design and art are top notch. i love the idea of switching between different monsters to get through the challenges. it's a fun 2D platformer and i would recommend it.