Its coming close to a year since I purchased my Switch and i don’t regret the purchase what so ever. I been able to play some classic remastered titles from the likes of Crash, Lumines and Street Fighter while enjoying the latest recreation of Mario. Now almost a year in it is wise to try some other franchises and if anything catches my attention. I tend to check the Nintendo YouTube or other areas to see what’s coming and Flat Heroes looked like an intriguing 2D platformer. I was luckily enough to get a review code from the developer Parallel Circle and been playing it for a good month and change.
Overview
The premise of Flat Heroes can be summed up in one word… SURVIVE! It starts off simple with you being a square and jumping and bouncing around the screen. But then it gets harder and relies on more than that. Some levels will require strategy and others will be completed by just pure dumb luck. There are over 300 levels and the times you need to complete one varies.
Gameplay
When you first play the game it just easy as jumping around using one button and the analog or D-Pad if you desire. As you progress you will need to learn how to dash and even attack or bounce objects as the levels get more difficult. What’s most interesting is while they can become more difficult sometimes you can come across a hard ass level that took a hair pulling amount of time and the next will be done in 15 seconds.
What I Like
It’s easy to pick up and play Flat Heroes as it’s not a hard game to grasp. Jump around to survive and use the environment as your playground. The game is set up in “Worlds” which each one having 15 Levels and the Final Boss being #15 via the Campaign mode. You do have the opportunity to skip a level or two and can go back to playing later. When you do complete the Worlds you are awards different color palettes or even new modes to play. One mode is you going thru the levels all over but with the difficulty cranked up a notch.
There are Multiplayer modes such as Versus where you can take on each other or A.I. and you can even jump into your usual solo levels and have folks help you up to 4 players. I have only done it with two players and it’s funny as it allows you and your partner(s) to create new strategies to take down some of the harder levels/bosses. Survival lives up to its name and seeing how long you can go without dying. The more you play, survive and go up the ranks you get points when can be used to unlock other modes in Survival. If you do bad you will lose points so pick your battles wisely.
One of my favorite features of the game believe it or not is how fast you get revived when you die. Its instant, no load times or anything. It keeps the momentum going and your mind fixated on the battle. Waiting for a game to load after a death can be annoying and take you out of the thrill. Instant revivals have kept me playing longer on levels then I care to say.
What I Don’t Like
It’s a great party game to play when you have friends over or you can take your Switch with you. Unfortunately there is no online play so you can’t take on levels or battle each other unless you are face to face. Not sure why developer Parallel Circles didn’t implement this but hopefully something they decide to add later in an update.
There isn’t much to dislike about this game but it can get frustrating on some levels. The controls are very sensitive and the slightest tap or tip can cost you the game and start you right over which is critical when playing through some of the bosses stages.
FYI: Flat Heroes does not support Nintendo Switch’s video capture feature.
Verdict
I suggest to anyone that has a Nintendo Switch to pick up this game. Its $9.99 and it’s one of the most fun games to play on the console. It’s easy to adapt and its awesome when played in multiplayer. Only thing I can really say is you will get addicted but that’s a good thing…right?
Flat Heroes can be purchased in the Nintendo eShop for $9.99. It also is available for Steam as well.
