Product Info

Platform

Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC

Publisher

FDG Entertainment

Developer

Game Atelier

Series

Monster

Genre

Action, Adventure, Platform, RPG

Players

1

File Size (Minimum)

4.15 GB

Release Date (NA)

Dec 4, 2018

Purchase From

Amazon

Best Buy

GameStop

eShop

PSN Store

Microsoft Store

Steam

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom is a side-scrolling platformer set in an entertaining, colorful, and puzzle-filled world. Available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC, it should be on your list of must-buy games for the year.

Originally About a Hamster

Monster Boy went through many forms before it became what it is today. Originally, the game was developed as a platformer revolving around a hamster with transformation skills titled Flying Hamster II. Developed by the Paris-based studio Game Atelier, that KickStarter project was cancelled in favor of collaborating with FDG Entertainment and working with Ryuichi Nishizawa to create a new Wonder Boy game, Monster Boy and the Wizard of Booze. The name changed again along the way, becoming Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom.

Cursed by a Drunk Uncle

Monster Boy’s story is abnormal. Nabu, the uncle of protagonist Jin, is drunk off his butt from stealing the king’s luxurious barrel of liquor and is casting magic across the kingdom, transforming people into animals and turning objects into various sizes. Jin senses that something is amiss with his uncle and vows to change him back to normal before the king and his men can capture and execute Nabu. To do so, Jin must find six orbs to bring peace back to the world. Oddly enough, each orb Jin obtains can also transform him into a creature.

Transforming, More Than Meets the Eye

Similar to the concept in Flying Hamster II and in Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap, Monster Boy’s protagonist can transform into six different forms: human, pig, snake, frog, lion, and dragon. Each form has its own unique ability that’ll help players solve puzzles and fight against enemies.

The pig, for example, can use his strong sense of smell to uncover clues and items, but one of the biggest advantages of this form is being able to sniff out magic truffles. Eating these truffles will give players the ability to use magic. Similarly, the frog can use his tongue to retrieve items and grab onto rings to swing across gaps. Meanwhile, the lion form can rush across water or other liquid pools and smash into breakable walls.

However, each form has limitations. While the pig is great for magic abilities and sniffing for clues, it cannot hold weapons or wear armor. The frog and lion forms can wear armor and swing a weapon but cannot use magic. As for the snake form, it’s limited to spitting acid and climbing mossy areas; it cannot wear equipment or cast spells. The human form can use magic, wear armor, and use weapons, but this form is actually taken away for most of the game. You can thank Uncle Nabu for this.

Each form makes Jin’s adventure more entertaining and opens the door to uncovering the multitude of secrets across the land. That means you’ll be backtracking a lot, but it’s worth the time to get those necessary items to upgrade your equipment to its highest potential.

Precise Movements Above Water

The controls for the game are very precise and feel great. Jin’s pig form, especially, is both entertaining to watch and easy to move around in. Whether you’re jumping, swinging, or running, the forms are all comfortable…until you go underwater.

Many forms cannot swim well in the water and that’s a given. The snake floats, however, unless it’s clinging onto a mossy area, and the pig just sinks to the bottom. Each of these forms require air at certain times from air bubbles. Remember Sonic the Hedgehog? At least you won’t get that scary tone when the countdown happens. The good news is that there’s a gauge to tell you how much time you have left before you have to grab a bubble.

Even better, the frog form does not need air and can swim much faster than other forms. (You’re going to be thankful for that unlimited air supply.) That said, you’ll be battling yourself while swimming in the frog form. While the underwater mechanics for most forms are different from those on land, the frog feels just about the same. It’s too loose to control and at times unpredictable when moving around in circular motions. There will be times when you are trying to avoid being squished by moving objects only to end up getting squished anyway. The best advice is to take it slow and move more gracefully.

Overall, it’s not the end of the world but the mechanics could be tightened up. The game is too much fun to be dragged down to the ocean floor.

Get Ready for a Hike

As you venture forth, you’re going to skip quite a few treasure chests and areas that are not accessible until you learn a few new transformations and abilities. That means you’ll be doing a lot of backtracking a la Metroid. Some players may be turned off by this but others may think of it like a side quest. If you are looking for pieces of gold to make that ultimate armor, be prepared for a trek across the land.

Currency in the game can be somewhat of a challenge. Players may find themselves buying more health refills and potions than they realize. Sure, you can make multiple trips back to the previous screen to defeat enemies for cash, but that’s not going to cut it since they can drop various other items, such as hearts and magic replenishments.

Bricks are your friend for grabbing cash. Breaking them gives you coins and making back-and-forth trips to save up for that armor may be your only option. If you have played a number of role-playing games, this isn’t something new.

Choose a Menu

With so many magic elements and forms for players to choose from, it can quickly get complicated. Fortunately, there are separate menus available, and each one is controlled by a button on the controller: equipment/items/settings, magic, and transformations. There are also shortcuts on the bottom-left corner of the screen to use and switch magic and one on the top-left for switching transformations.

Unfortunately, switching transformations and magic can be bothersome with the game’s default settings. This is especially evident during boss fights or when you have to transform quickly to cross obstacles like lava falls. You are reliant on using the d-pad or joystick to make your selection on a circular graph. It’s tricky to select the correct thing under pressure and can be irritating when you choose the wrong thing accidentally and get hurt or die as a result. Thankfully, the game allows you turn off the default selection setting and let you switch between transformations and magic with the simple press of a button.

Like Watching a TV Show

When the game changed from Flying Hamster II to Monster Boy, the hand drawn illustrations also underwent modification—better proportions, cleaner look, and more vibrant—to match the latter’s more colorful world.

Both the characters and the environments they inhabit are bright, whimsical, and have detailed animation. The game’s depth of field is impressive, too. Objects in the forefront and background are scaled and move across the screen with the character flawlessly, giving the game a unique feel with it’s 2.5D world. For those who have played or seen Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, the graphics are quite similar and seeing more of this style is quite welcome.

The animation became more fluid and dynamic in the shift, too. The pig’s movements and the frog’s tongue swinging abilities make it look like you were watching a Saturday morning cartoon. Of course, the game’s opening animation, complete with its exclusive vocal theme, enhance this feeling even more.

Monster Boy’s soundtrack also gives the bright world a satisfying boost. From the cheerful overworld track to the intense boss battles, you may find yourself humming right along as you play. It took two years for the composers to finish the soundtrack and it shows. The end result is beautiful.

Final Transformation

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom is an entertaining, colorful, and delightful platformer. The journey it took to reach its current incarnation may have been long, but it has most certainly been worth it. If you enjoy pigs with eye patches, this is the right game for you.

Disclaimer: A digital review copy was provided by FDG Entertainment for the PlayStation 4.