It’s been an interesting year for retro games making a return, especially those that were b-level at best. For example, Rocket Knight made an acceptable return in a downloadable platformer, and Nintendo has brought back Kid Icarus from the dead for the 3DS. Hudson, not one to be left out of the fun, has Bonk: Brink of Extinction making a return as a downloadable title coming this year. With some hands-on, I can see if this game holds up to expectations
E3 had a quick demo of the title, showing off some of the new abilities that Bonk brings to the fold. Yep, he still has his head-butt attack, and there are plenty of dino baddies to get in the way. He’ll still be collecting fruit and eating hunks of meat to gain a temporary invincibility as a hairier caveman, and all in all, the game is a standard platformer. Yeah, flipping through the air to float down is still a Bonk tradition, but there really wasn’t anything that made it seem particularly exceptional.
However, there is some new gameplay elements. For example, Bonk now has powers that cause his head to change. For example, Bonk could grow icy spikes on his head, and with this ice power could freeze enemies into blocks of ice and use them for simple platforming puzzles. Again, it’s not anything groundbreaking, but it’ll get the job done.
Coming away from Bonk: Brink of Extinction, however, is a feeling of complete apathy. The game doesn’t look particularly nice, and the platforming action is typical to say the least. Is it a bad game? I honestly don’t know, but it’s so completely generic, I suspect Bonk might never get over his “me too” status. Hopefully when it comes out later this year, I can be proven wrong.
