Twenty-five years have passed. It’s been so long since the first Klonoa game was released for PS1. Now is the anniversary.
Many imaginative characters have seen the light in various games, not least in platform games. Obviously I put Mario first. But the list can be long: Croc, Ratchet & Clank, Wonder Boy, Sonic and Rayman are some more.
Klonoa can be added to this list. He is another weird character. Some kind of animal. Which? I have had several assumptions, but the answer is probably that it is a fantasy animal in which the developers have found inspiration from different animal species.
Klonoa saw the light in 1997 in Klonoa: Door to Phantomile. The one for the first PlayStation console. In 2001, Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil was released for Playstation 2. Door to Phantomile was released as a Wii remake in 2008. Some Klonoa games were also released for portable consoles.
It is now Klonoa’s 25th anniversary. Both games were released in one collection in connection with the anniversary. This in the form of a remaster: Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series. The collection is available for Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X / S.
Klonoa games can best be described as a true platform game where you jump on tracks with different platform elements interspersed with boss battles. These boss battles are also typical platformer battles, but they never get overly difficult.
Retro games may be relatively difficult for beginners. One trend we have seen in recent years is that developers nowadays want a game that is suitable for everyone, regardless of skill level. This has meant that nowadays there are often different levels of difficulty, ranging from extremely easy to extremely difficult. In addition to the original, there is also another level of difficulty in the Phantasy Reverie series which is really easy. Although I am bothered by one detail. Before each garment, a suggestion box with text and image appears. Explain how to beat the boss. These tips can be turned off.
I played Door to Phantomile and Lunatea’s Veil alternately. This way I could easily see the differences between the games. It turned out that the differences were small, but the runner-up is slightly stronger at a slower pace. It was almost like playing the same game.
Incidentally, the plot of both games is a bit confusing. It seems that the developers have inserted different text boxes and characters just to create a storyline in each game. That’s how uninteresting they are. If you want to, and I have often wanted to, luckily you can fast-forward beyond all the narrative elements.
Both Klonoa games are two-dimensional platformers, or to be more precise 2.5D. Half means that the game is something between two and three dimensions. The gameplay itself takes place in two dimensions, while the surrounding environment is three-dimensional.
As I said, the graphics have been remastered and just like the sound received a major update. However, I think the developers could have put more energy into the graphics details because it looks a bit shoddy at times. However, the games run fine on my PS5 at 60 frames per second and 4K. If you like game music, your pleasure will be satisfied in the Phantasy Reverie series. The pieces of music are, at times, absolutely wonderful and greatly enhance the feeling of playing.
The game mechanics are mostly well done, but Klonoa’s basic movement patterns are limited. For example, she cannot double jump but only glide, if you can now call her flying movements that. Soon, however, you get a double jump, but it requires an enemy. You grab an enemy, jump and the next time you press the jump button, Klonoa’s friend blows air into the enemy, after which you get up and then you get a double jump. This mostly works well, but sometimes you have to combine double jumps with gliding, which is tricky in terms of timing.
There isn’t much to collect in either game. The gems (quite difficult to collect and almost impossible to know how many you have collected) are interspersed with inhabitants (easy to find) in the world you are in. Also, there are coins.
There were no co-op options in the original games. In the Phantasy Reverie series, the developers have added just such a cooperative mode. It is nothing advanced and is more suitable if you are playing with a child or if you want to have a nice time with your partner.
The Klonoa Phantasy Reverie series should be included in your game collection if you like platform games. It’s a welcoming game where the remaster has been successful, although the graphics could have been more detailed. An extra plus for the music that is sometimes wonderful.
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