Moon Raider Review

 (image source: hardcoredroid.com)

A ton of mobile games get ported to Switch, and sometimes they catch my eye. This game was one of them, it is cheaper on mobile phones but was the higher price and the controls worth it, Kero Blaster also started on phones but then moved to consoles at a slightly higher price but I found it worth it, there are a good handful of games that started on phones and ended up on switch. I have a good number of them, so let's see if this is one of them.

This game opens with one cutscene and that is all you get in terms of story, in terms of presentation that is all you get. The music was pretty forgettable and the sprites were well done but the enemies are reused throughout the whole game and slightly altered for each area. This game definitely feels like it was made for phones, it controls well enough but sometimes if you jump near a wall you might roll around it or get caught on ledge, it feels like a little bit more polish was needed. There were graphical issues and when I lost a life the assets would disappear and there were a few hiccups here and there.

Your goal is to navigate the various environments of the moon, defeating enemies, and collect 200 of a special type of gem to finish the game. You have the ability to double jump, shoot, and use a light dash that defeats enemies, heals you, and grants invulnerability when you have gems in your inventory which can be collected from enemies and boxes and depletes when used, and that is it. You navigate all of the same environments with different coats of paint, defeat enemies, dash past traps and repeat. There are bosses and all but one feel the same which is are easy to learn and defeat. This game also has infinite lives and you reset in every room with only your progress resetting. The game saves every room and your progress saves every time you enter a new room. You can also rescue random aliens who will give you a gem that adds to your gem count, which can be increased.

This game feels like it drags on too long, and the gameplay definitely feels like a mobile game. The game plays fine but with the gameplay being so samey and secrets not only being obvious and easy to find, they feel like they don't add much. With infinite lives and easy ways to get gems it felt like the upgrades didn't add much. Only the final boss was a challenge and that was because it was multiple forms and you have to do it all in one run, but can be defeated with a little patience and learning the patterns just like the other bosses. This game was short but felt long, it took me four hours to beat so if you are interested I would say wait for a say, I had some fun but the fun quickly faded. I had to put the game down and pick it up multiple times, it was okay in short bursts but you get everything right out the gate and it is the same all the way through. The game is rinse and repeat with only the environments changing form but not function, this game is fine and maybe I will revisit it someday but I got bored quickly. I enjoyed the beginning but lost interest as it was the same all the way through. Even all the rooms felt the same as I went through them, doing the same. This game I can only can recommend on sale for retro fans but there are better retro inspired indie games. This game plays fine, and looks fine, I could not remember much of the presentation or music but it plays okay.

 (Looks fine, plays fine, graphical hiccups, definitely feels like a mobile game, not worth the price, maybe worth it on sale, samey gameplay, lacked variety, dragged on)