Dogworld

I love this game. The characters are cool, the story and gameplay balance well together and its fun. The movement and combat are well designed and totally live up to the Cave Story influence. Only real negative I had was that a few too many areas felt like they were trying to be the epic "Final Area", which threw off my sense of progression a bit and stopped the actual final area from hitting as hard. Similarly, though I liked the music in general this resulted in quite a few songs having a similar emotional range which I got a bit tired of eventually.

classic and a must play for those who like side scrolling shooters, only issue is that once you make a combination weapon you cant go back.

'... please, Boy! This is probably our only shot!' Dogworld is a metroidvania platformer where you uncover the world left behind after the humanity hunkered down underground. Slide away and shoot through many obstacles stopping you in a journey... full of dogs. And save it from the Daddy AI that has gone rogue. Story... is in the title. You explore the world as a human, only known as Boy, who is freed from the capsule after an accident blasting you away onto the surface. Void of any human life, as true per short brief on history right before you were sent out there, you slowly uncover strange creatures now inhabiting the world. Nearly all of them with dog features. And some... dogs that can talk. You also learn that the AI encapsulating all of the humans (nick)named Daddy is hurting the same dogs for reasons you will have to uncover yourself, as you help the pack from that AI. The game features three different endings, to which the game will warn you where you're entering the point of no return. Some decisions you take will determine the fate when you reach the end. Pay attention to it and keep uncovering secrets for better outcome. Main reason why I state this is that the game doesn't stress that enough and it'll be your main factor for replay value. Once you save the progress beyond that line, all missed secrets, gear that you didn't upgrade will remain that way indefinitely. The only way for you to go back is to boot up a new one. Shoot. Slide. Pet. Repeat. Simple gameplay of shooting enemies until they're pixels. And as you progress, you get your hands on more weaponry to overcome your challenges. Shotgun, Machine Gun, Barrel Launcher, to which you can switch on the fly. And later, as you uncover secrets, slay monsters, or win many claw machine prizes, you can talk to Micah and spend the currency to upgrade the efficiency of your favorite weapons. You can even combine two weapons into one powerful synergy, if you manage to find secret blueprints. Whatever you do, keep your Shotgun close, as it is the key to uncovering most of secrets. hint hint Your only way to truly defend yourself is to slide. It gives you up to half a second of invincibility, dodging any incoming fire or enemy that's about to touch you. This mechanic will prove mandatory for not only your survival, but as additional means to traverse landscapes, the further you progress in the game. Oh yea, did I mention you can pet dogs?! Bosses. Test of skill and patience Dogworld can be a challenging platformer, but nothing will compare to it than the Boss fights. Early on, some have simple patterns to follow, while later boss fights will be constantly reminding you that you must slide away from trouble as frequently as possible to survive some of the attacks. They can get really infuriating, as your timing will be factored in later on, leaving a trial and error kind of loop until you bested a boss. Should also mention that this game features designated save zones. Chiptune in action. Done right! A serious praise has to go to the game's soundtrack. One of the main reasons as to why it kept me playing the game. Adrenaline pumping chiptune tracks seamlessly blends within the game, no matter if it's for ambience, exploration or encounters. Highly recommended to check out the Bandcamp, as it's the only way to listen to the album, by the time I wrote this review. Dogworld may not be for everyone. A simple gameplay with a 1bit asthetic and plenty of charming details that the average boy could easily miss out. Regardless, you venture into the solid storyline packed with retro platforming, shooting and dodging with this one. Absolute recommendation to anybody who's a sucker for things retro and challenge. While it's unrelated, let this game be a reminder that indie game developers always start small. Because this is the next game we've got from this developer.