Spelunky Review ( XBLA ) by Jordan Alsaqa
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Since it was first released in 2008, the freeware PC game Spelunky has gained a fair amount of cred in the indie community. Combining elements of dungeon crawlers and roguelikes , Derek Yu’s action adventure game has been praised for randomly-generated levels, old-school design and 8-bit graphics. The game has also earned a fair amount of infamy for its brutal difficulty and steep learning curve.
The reputation Spelunky carries with it actually makes the entire design of the Xbox Live Arcade remake downright brilliant. This doesn’t have so much to do with the actual gameplay, which remains largely the same as it was in the freeware edition. No, the true stroke of brilliance in this updated version comes down to the revamped graphical style
Put simply, Spelunky is a very cute game. The aesthetic is all about creating an inviting atmosphere, one that distracts from the sheer brutality on hand. From the main character to late-game threats like yetis and aliens, every design elicits a sense of whimsy and fun.
What makes the art style so brilliant is the fact that it manages to pull people in, possibly never letting go. The cutesy graphics belie the real difficulty of the game, and all it takes is those first few plays for Spelunky to sink its teeth in and drive gamers to try for better and longer-lasting runs.
The thing that makes Spelunky ‘s design so effective is that the game’s inviting nature never feels like a trick. Instead, it’s a legitimate way to involve gamers in a truly rewarding experience that they may have otherwise passed over. The challenge of Spelunky makes for a high barrier of entry, but the charming aesthetic provides a helpful way in.
It may not seem like much, but that aesthetic helps players deal with the constant deaths that will plague them. Being killed by a bat for the third time in a row hurts a little less when that bat looks so friendly.
Get used to those happy bats, too, because you’ll be seeing them for several hours. A great deal of Spelunky relies on trial and error. Whether facing off against your first snake or taking on the final boss, every enemy will be a challenge the first few times you run into them. Figuring out at what distance a scorpion will lunge or how far a snail’s poison bubble will spread takes a bit of research-and that’s assuming there aren’t several other enemies in the area trying to kill you.
Of course, all you have to do is make it to the exit door, and everything will be OK. In fact, killing things in Spelunky brings no rewards other than the freedom to explore every nook and cranny of each level, and if the goal is just to get to the exit, you might wonder why you’d bother looking for anything.
As the title suggests, Spelunky is all about exploration, despite the simple “get to the goal” objective. As you master each of the game’s levels, you’ll find that there’s always more to each one than meets the eye.
Exploration means more treasure, hidden items, and damsels in distress, all of which help to build your little explorer into a more efficient spelunker. You may spend more time in the early levels, but that commitment will pay off deeper in the game, when enemies who are immune to the whip fall before the might of the shotgun.
Spelunky is all about getting back what you put into it. Kill a shopkeeper in one level and you’ll face hostility throughout the rest of the game. Hold off using certain equipment early on and it can be used to build permanent shortcuts to later levels. Even experiencing each type of death is useful, as it helps fill up the game journal with new information.
Spelunky is another example of the unique, independently-developed experiences that define the downloadable market. It hides its devious nature under a candy coating, but those who give it a try will find a rewarding game that stays fresh no matter how many times they die.
