Tiny Galaxy

7.5 Overall Score
Gameplay: 6/10
Graphics: 8/10
Sound: 9/10

Great Soundtrack | Unique Gameplay

Screen Flipping | Level Selection Screen

Game Info

GAME NAME: Tiny Galaxy

DEVELOPER(S): Arcane Pixel

PUBLISHER(S): Arcane Pixel

PLATFORM(S): Nintendo Wii U

GENRE(S): Platformer

RELEASE DATE(S): July 16th, 2015

I’ve had the opportunity to play Arcane Pixel’s Tiny Galaxy since the game’s infancy, playing many of the pre-release builds via PC builds.  Lets just say that the keyboard controls left something to be desired and the “flipping” of the screen that I will get into later in the review was more magnified on the PC monitor.  I felt like since I’ve gotten to play the game along the way that I should be the one to place my final thoughts and review the game that some would compare to a 2D Super Mario Galaxy. 

tiny-galaxy-level1

 

The game starts out with a little storyboard sequence of some bully stealing your character Orion’s headphones.  Well you know how we do in space when some ass clown steals our headphones, we run around small planets collecting stars and jumping through black holes, right? Tiny Galaxy features 6 worlds that contain 10 levels each.  Every 10th level is a boss fight in which you have to flip a switch to send a rocket the bosses way.  Do this 3 times and the Boss is done a la Mario style.  It was disappointing that there were no more storyboards as you progressed through the different worlds, I would have welcomed some more banter between Orion and the headphone thief.

Tiny-galaxy-blade-level

The controls are very simple to get down and feel very natural once you get the hang of the screen flipping.  When you launch yourself to a nearby planet, the screen will turn making sure that when you land you are looking at your character right side up.  Thankfully, the screen flip isn’t nearly as dramatic as it was on the PC build I played but it was still dramatic enough that after 20 levels my eyes started hurting a little.  I recommend splitting up your play sessions so that the flip effect doesn’t mess with you head too much.  The only button is jump and you use this to navigate planets as well as collect stars and dodge obstacles.  Collect 3 stars and a black hole will open up and you can exit the level.

tiny-galaxy-shark-level

While the game is a blast to play it does have a couple of negatives regarding the level select screen.  After you finish every level it always brings the selection screen back to the first world.  Also there is no way to figure out what levels you have already finished so I recommend that you complete them in order and just divide your stars by 3 to figure out how many levels you have completed.  A level selection overhaul would go a long way into making Tiny Galaxy a more complete experience.

The graphics in the title look great on your TV screen or on the GamePad.  I love the different level designs and Fabric Beach is just awesome.  The art work is very well done.  The soundtrack is also well written and well implemented.  Matt Desind did a great job composing the soundtrack and Arcane Pixel did a great job of of making sure that the songs fit in properly to each of the different worlds.  The sound effects sound a little Sonic to me though.

The Recommendation

Even with a few minor flaws, Tiny Galaxy is at it’s core a really fun indie title.  It holds up well against some of the other 2D platformers but brings it’s own flare to the fray that helps it stand on it’s own accord.  I recommend giving the title a shot if platforming is your thing.

Summary

Review Date
Reviewed Item
Tiny Galaxy (Wii U)
Author Rating
41star1star1star1stargray

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Author: Anthony DeVirgilis View all posts by
Managing Partner / Editor for Sony/Nintendo I prefer Indies to AAA titles... unless it's Nintendo or Sony Google+ Author