Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril Review

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Fast Facts

A Blast from the Past

Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril is a retro action platformer released in 2010. This game was recently ported to the Nintendo Switch, and I am reviewing that version. It is straightforward and focuses on tight platforming and facing foes. Was this relic worth unearthing? Find out in this Rapid Review.

To begin my adventure, Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril shows a call to action and sets me off. The story is cute and interesting enough, but it is not revolutionary. I met the main characters, saw the problem, and watched my characters act accordingly. Still, considering that this game is an action platformer, I did not mind. The story elements that were present were more than enough to suffice. I was also treated some some nice visuals while the dialogue was shown. These were not cutscenes, but the visuals were appealing and provided a close-up look at the different scenes and characters in Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril. I thought these added to the dialogue, and helped me associate each character with their words. The story arc tied in with the photos to create a simple, yet pleasing story. 

However, the theming as a whole was severely lacking. I typically am not a stickler for things such as theming, but I found that my main character as well as the enemy designs were often uninspired. Though I thought the boss fights had good designs, I was dismayed to fight multiple different types of spheres on my journey. This example is on the more extreme side of the game’s offerings. There are plenty of real enemies such as sea creatures or generic monsters. Yet, as a whole, many of these themes were lacklustre. The generic foes and underwhelming theming made Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril bland. 

Game Feel

The primary gameplay loop further exaggerated the issues I had with the blandness of Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril. For starters, the game plays very similarly to a Metroidvania. There is one large interconnected map where I could face enemies, find upgrades, and unlock new areas to explore. There are checkpoints and teleporters scattered around too. These features made it possible to save my progress and move around the map freely. Though this is a familiar gameplay loop, still in premise, this all works nicely.

However, once I got my hands on it, I found the gameplay to be a bit monotonous. First, I was disappointed with my main character. Without any upgrades, he can walk, jump, and shoot small projectiles at enemies to deal damage. This is quite bland, and it is especially tedious since projectiles can only be shot directly in front of the character. Unfortunately, it is far more disappointing than this. See, going in, I was optimistic that despite this mediocre array of options, upon exploration, I would uncover more engaging ways to interact with my surroundings. This was not the case. I found a double jump, a higher jump, and a way to hover in the air for a bit. Simply, the main character is not fun to use in the beginning and despite finding all the upgrades, the main character is not fun at the end.

Friends Made Along the Way

Not only was the protagonist disappointing, but the general levels were also boring. Level screens were often very basic. There were very few interesting objects to interact with, and due to underwhelming theming, most areas did not feature memorable items. Moreover, enemies were placed around, but I did not feel overwhelmingly excited about taking them out. Many of the basic enemies were just as simple. They largely walked in linear trajectories, shot bullets, and inevitably fell to my protagonist. I rarely felt rewarded or satisfied in defeating them. Getting defeated by enemies felt like a chore rather than an obstacle, as getting through each area often failed to maintain my passion. 

Despite these very sizeable downsides, Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril does bring one major selling point. The game has excellent boss designs. They are rewarding, telegraph their attacks nicely, and encourage me to use every element of my toolkit. I think these foes made the experience significantly better. They changed the pace of the game while refreshing my interest. The bosses are a solid addition to Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril. Also, the game features a boss rush mode after clearing the game. This is a lot of fun, especially considering the quality of those fights.

I also enjoyed how the game handled its difficulty. There are multiple options to select at the beginning of the game that range from very easy to incredibly challenging. While I found the game to be perfectly manageable on normal difficulty, having these options is excellent. 

Painting the Picture

Further, Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril does not feature an overly charming art style. As I mentioned before, the theming is a bit drab. This carries over into the pixel art. Of course, many enemies are disinteresting, but I found the most disappointment in my main character. He exists and his hitboxes are clear, but I did not necessarily like him. He was not interesting or cool to me. The levels are similar. There were undeniably some interesting areas, such as the casino-esque card place, but as a whole, I found the locations bland and forgettable. 

The music was nothing special, but certainly was a step up from the art design. Sometimes during my playthrough, I would hum along to the chiptune soundtrack. It was simple, but I enjoyed it. I also appreciated how different areas had different music. 

As a whole, Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril is a decent game. It functions well and there are some great boss fights in store here. The levels are somewhat engaging but they do not incite much excitement, and neither does much else about the game. Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril does not have anything innately wrong or broken about it, but it certainly does not impress compared to the vast Nintendo Switch library.

3 out of 5

3

You can purchase Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril on the Nintendo eShop here