The fantastical 3D platformer is set to come out in March, but you can find out what it's all about a lot sooner.
Balan Wonderworld, the whimsical action-platformer from the creators of games including Sonic the Hedgehog, Nights into Dreams, and Phantasy Star Online, is set to arrive on Steam in March. You'll be able to see what it's all about next week, though, with the arrival of a beefy demo offering roughly two hours of solo or local co-op gameplay in parts of three of the game's 12 realms:
World 1 – The Man Who Rages Against the Storm
Playable Areas: Act 1, Act 2, Boss Battle
World 4 – The Boy Who Would be One with the Wind
Playable Areas: Act 1
World 6 – The Girl and the Kitten
Playable Areas: Act 1
Along with that, you'll also have the opportunity to explore the Isle of Tims, a sort of home base area that also serves as a gateway to the demo's three realms. The name does not arise from a Canadian coffee chain sponsorship, but from the name of the magical creatures who inhabit the island—the Tims—whose abilities can be used to aid the game's heroes, Leo and Emma, as they explore each game world and do battle with Negati, the bad guys who, if I'm understanding things correctly, plague people with "worries and negativity."
Balan Wonderworld is a collection of 12 different stories, themed around a mysterious, magical musical theater. The stars of the show will take advantage of special abilities gained from more than 80 "characterful costumes" as they explore memories and "get to the heart of each touching story." It's lighthearted and silly, but not entirely so: Cass Milligan's friendship with the stray kitten in chapter six, for instance, takes a seriously wrong turn during a chance meeting one day:
"She waved to her newfound friend from across the road just as the lights changed... Now she wishes she could turn back time."
I won't lie, there's a little part of me, deep down inside, that's curling up into a ball at this very moment.
Despite those twinges of childhood trauma that I thought were long buried and behind me, I think Balan Wonderworld looks very promising—platformers aren't usually my thing but there's a kind of Psychonauts ambience going on here that I find really appealing. The demo is set to go live on Steam on January 28, while the full game will be out on March 26, and leading up to that you can find out more at from square-enix-games.com.