Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition
G!:STCE is a game that I did not start out convinced on at all, looking at the previews. In fact, the only reason I even checked it out is the fact that it went free for Games for Gold.
I was wrong, and I couldn't be happier about it.
The thing that stands out to me most about G!:STCE is the presentation. This is the only game I have played based on Hispanic mythology and luchador wrestling. Everything about the game plays into one or both of these things, and the complete package is something I am truly happy to have played through.
First off, the colors! The colors feel like they just POP! Everything is very bright, feels very clean, and separates the different areas of the game in a way that each is visually distinct while still having everything flow together in a way that makes sense. All this is on top of the differences between the realms of the living and the dead. Everything together, this is a beautiful package.
Second, the music. Man, the music was just a whole lot of fun to listen to. Even in moments where I would be feeling frustrated because of repeated deaths, I never had one of those mute-moments that comes from hearing the same few seconds of music over and over.
The gameplay itself is incredibly solid. Most platforming deaths were a result of my error, and I was able to fix things through some quick adjustment. In addition, the platforming puzzles themselves made perfect use of the different techniques picked up throughout the game. Finally, having the combat system be a part of travel was a whole lot of fun for me as well.
Combat is probably the only stumbling block in the game for me, personally. Some of the later combat challenges require what feels like luck on top of timing, and sometimes things didn't just break my way. On top of that, there are some moments where things just feel incredibly cheap, and that frustrated me more than it should have.
That said, combat progressed the same way the exploration did. Things got more varied and more crazy the more things that got added to my arsenal, and when things clicked, they just clicked. When things finally got flowing, I just felt unstoppable. It was glorious.
Finally, a special shoutout to the final boss. Bullshit hard, and it almost got me to quit the game. I got it eventually, but man does it feel overtuned.
Anyways, fun game. Probably the best I've played in the genre in a very long time.









