Unruly Heroes

Even if you've never read the 16th century novel Journey to the West, I have a hunch that you've felt its cultural significance. Although the classic Chinese story is more than four hundred years old, it has managed to inspire everything from Dragon Ball to SonSon to Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Unruly Heroes is the newest video game to adapt this famous novel, and while the material may seem well-worn at this point, this multiplayer-focused side-scroller does a good job of setting itself apart with a great sense of humor, creative level designs and graphics that are to die for. But watch out, because the journey to the west to a bumpy ride filled with gameplay problems you might not see coming.

This is the story of what happens when the Sacred Scrolls that maintain harmony are torn apart and scattered throughout the land. The result is a plague of monsters that leave death and chaos in their wake. To combat this tide of violence, four unruly heroes have decided to team up in an attempt to restore peace and order to Heaven and Earth. But are these the right heroes for the job? Even the narrator seems a little unsure.

If you know anything about Journey to the West, then this quartet won't come as much of a surprise. There's Wukong, a fearless monkey with a powerful staff; Sanzang, a wise monk with a penchant for magic; Kihong, a greedy pig that can balloon in size if needed; and Sandmonk, a sensitive brute who specializes in close-quarters combat. These four warriors will need to use teamwork and their special abilities to overcome puzzles and fight off 29 stages filled with powerful monsters.

Right off the bat you'll discover that Wukong and Sandmonk can double jump their way to hard to reach areas, while Kihong and Sanzang are only able to float over large gaps. The differences extend to individual abilities, such as Wukong being able to use his staff to create a bridge or Sanzang throwing energy balls to open up locked gates. You'll also find that some characters are more powerful than others, something that allows Sandmonk to bust through stone walls with his bare hands.

If you can't tell by the descriptions, this is intended to be played with a bunch of friends working together. But don't worry, solo players aren't left out. Instead of relying on your friends to know what to do, you'll spend the game swapping between the four characters. This ends up giving us a strategic advantage, since the different characters each have their own life bar. You can lose two or three of your heroes, but just as long as there is one good guy left, you'll be able to resurrect the rest and continue fighting. I played through the entire game by myself and never once felt like I was missing out.

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Part of the reason is because the adventure is legitimately epic. And I don't say that lightly, because the 29 stages take you on a journey to Hell and back. The stages don't just look incredible, but they are a lot more diverse than I was expecting. Unruly Heroes lulls you into expecting the usual 2D platforming puzzles after the first couple stages, but then things get weird. There are stages where the characters are turned into babies, areas where you'll be able to reverse gravity and even bits where you can literally take over an enemy's body and use it against the monsters. And it's not just one enemy you can do that with, but multiple bad guys, each with their own attacks and abilities. Best of all, the 29 stages are long and won't be completed in a single sitting. Like I said, this game is epic.

It's also gorgeous. This is an absolutely stunning game with graphics that look like they were hand painted on the screen. The backgrounds are constantly changing and filled with details, something that looks even better thanks to the game's liberal use of soft focus. And just wait until you see the bosses. This game is overflowing with creative (and occasionally funny) boss designs, and I love how each of them comes at you in a slightly different way. Every time I felt like Unruly Heroes couldn't possibly get any prettier, the developers proved me wrong with an even bigger and cooler set piece. I couldn't wait to see what the game had in store for me next, and I was never disappointed.

Unfortunately, I was a little let down by the gameplay. If there's a weak link in Unruly Heroes, this is it. The problem is that this game seems to prioritize the animation over everything else, leading to a lot of moments where you'll die in ridiculous ways. And to make matters worse, the platforming feels floaty and lacks the precision you would want from this type of game. This is especially true late in the game, when pinpoint accuracy is essential to survival. It never felt like I was fully in control of these characters, even after I had spent the better part of ten hours sending them through one harrowing stage after another.

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The control issues only get worse when you're asked to hang off the platforms. There's an entire section of the game where there are these platforms you can't stand on, so the only way to navigate them is to dangle using a glowing light. The reason why all this is happening isn't important, but what matters is that leaping from these invisible platforms works about half the time. Either you'll get a nice big jump into the air or you'll no absolutely nowhere. It's impossible to tell which of those will happen, which makes some of the timed areas extra frustrating. I feel like with a little tightening and polish, the gameplay could be as striking as the visuals. But as it is, the controls are kind of a mess.

Unruly Heroes is an epic adventure with stunning visuals, a great sense of humor and some truly inventive level designs. Every single stage is filled with standout moments, and I'm in love with a few of the boss fights. Unfortunately, some of my enthusiasm is derailed by floaty controls and combat the devolved into senseless button mashing. But don't let that be a deal-breaker, because Unruly Heroes gets almost everything else right. It's not perfect, but Unruly Heroes is worth it for the gorgeous graphics and the lengthy story. Now go on and prove that doubtful narrator wrong.