Nostalgia whether it's the return of long blood franchises or reworking mechanics blocked right out of the early '90s, this retro Revival has shown many classic ideas still hold up even in an era of Cutting Edge technology. However, it's not often that these new games Step Beyond pain homage to truly expand on those foundations. That's exactly where Anton Blast from Summit sphere stands apart. At first glance, it may look familiar to seasoned platformer fans, drawing clear inspiration from Wario Land much like last year's Pizza Tower did. But after spending some time with the full release, it goes deeper than surface level homage. Rather than just revisiting the past, the developers have built on it, crafting something fresh and exciting while retaining those strong foundations.
It's loud, bold, and overflowing with creativity like a garage rock band. They grew out of a shared love for Classics but strive to make their own unique sound. Anton blast clears that goal and easily stands as one of the best gaming experiences of the Year both for Platformers and independent releases. If you're after a title that reinvigorates the classics with its own Putting Edge Innovations and fisty personality, then Anton blast is easily a must-play. Picking up where the team's previous game left off, Blast follows the characters of dynamite Anton and Annie as they take on Satan himself in a quest to retrieve their stolen collection of spirits and reduce his kingdom to Rubble. Standing in their way is an army of bumbling goons, challenging obstacle courses, and a suite of bosses that push the game's programming and players through their Paces.
Some sphere have gone further than their contemporaries with lasts animation and presentation. At times, it almost feels like a tie-in game to a rockus flash animated cartoon, punctuating moments between levels with animated sequences and funny acting. Do you suppose that Antoine thinks about me? I suppose. One small warning is that this game is definitely aimed at older players due to some foul language.
But if Anton blast's potential audience, that seasoned platformer freaks looking for new Thrills, while the premise of obstacle clearing and boss bashing feels familiar, Anton blast injects its own twists into the classic formula. The starters the tis protagonist is a play subversion of Mario's iconic handyman image. Anton or Annie is a hyperactive hulking force of Destruction, smashing their way through levels with a hammer, using it for double jumps and obliterating obstacles. It's always impressive to rip through environments, and the game never drops a frame, in spite of how much destruction is going on. This emphasis on chaos evokes the Box smashing antics of Crash bandic, which has inspired one of Anton blast's most Unique Mechanics.
By tapping the attack button in quick succession, players can launch Anton across the environment, picking up speed and turning him into a human wrecking ball. Velocity is one of Anton blast guiding principles, and that speedrun Focus gameplay is a big part of his lasting appeal. Having played Anton blast through free different stages of development over the past 2 years, I noticed that each time I return, I improve. That's no accident because Anton blast is designed to encourage players to refine their skills, uncover hidden secrets, maximize their scores, and down their play times. While you're encouraged to get into Anton's aggressive mindset, the game sings when you're finally tuning its tight controls, falling off acrobatic Feats that previous platformer Stars could only dream of.
Drawing inspiration from Nintendo's Wario Land 4, the levels in Anton blast are sprawling exploratory spaces where finding the path forward is just as challenging as collecting your loot. This is only one act of the adventure, as there's no conventional flag hole to reach, but instead a timer that signals a Mad Dash back to the entrance. Anton blast enhances this borrowed idea with its own explosive identity, as this moment starts detonating the level around you. These Escape sections are the game with its most post pounding, with a colossal orchestral track that makes these moments feel epic every time. And Anton blast keeps its level count lean but memorable, issuing from the platform of tropes of grass fire and winter wonderlands to dig into open chaos construction sites and some truly unique roles.
Each stage feels like a handpick track on a mixtape, packed with Unique Mechanics, fresh ideas, and eye-catching Aesthetics, not to mention a few delightful surprises. Each is lengthy, often covering more ground than the classics, and it encourages players to revisit their favorites and dive deeper, much like putting a favorite song on repeat. While I won't go through every level track by track, one of my favorite fuses a gem-filled mine with a fully functional pinball table, where Anton is flipped and bounced around to progress. Though the game still features plenty of traditional platforming challenges, it's levels like this that make Anton blast stand out from the competition.
It's clear that Suit Sphere wasn't constrained by retro platforming rules. They didn't set out to make a game that could have been released on the GBA or Nintendo DS. Instead, they took those influences as a starting point and used modern game development to create something completely new. The game may have its roots in classic design, but it never feels creatively stifled. The epic boss battles are a prime example of this, like the fight against a segmented Pinko dragon that uses old school Sprite overlapping methods before breaking new ground with effects I've never seen in this kind of tech.
Although the game will thrive on replay, even if you only play through once, there's so many humongous moments in Anton blast that the experience will stick with you for a long time. There's no smile because it happened, cry because it's over. What is so impressive about Anton blast is that it's confident enough to go Beyond near image recognition. I would hardly recommend the game to any platform fan, old or new, because it is so immediately enjoyable and brimming with great ideas. For genre Scholars, the game feels like a playable Easter egg hunt. You'll see mechanics and Concepts reworked from titles as eclectic as Virtual Boy Warrior land, but if you were none the wiser, you wouldn't feel as if you were missing the context. Everything cohesively mhes together, perhaps in a bold and off-kilter art style and soundtrack that is so wholly the developer's own. While others may feel the warm and fuzzzy nostalgia of playing the platforming great, when going for Anton blast, everyone else won't be left out. In fact, it could be the game that gets you into a whole new world of fantastic platforms, as it remixes samples from like getting into Darth Punk or Justice. You might want to go and seek out the games it's referencing, or you could simply enjoy Anton Blast for the wild Punk platform it is. Either way, I'd be Keen to know whether you'll give the game a try when it releases December 3rd on Steam and coming soon to the Nintendo switch. I'm James, and I'll see you all in the next upload.