Klonoa: Door to Phantomile

"Good. Could be better..."

Klonoa is a platform game developed by Namco. A game with great potential, Klonoa is quite good, although its various flaws prevent it from being something more than just a good game. I'll try to explain why…

Story: N/A

Can't say that I remember the plot of the game. You are some sort of an animal kiddo that has a strange creature as a friend, who lives inside a ring and helps you when in trouble. Suddenly a bad guy pops out and you must stop him. There are some mysteries unveiled through the course of the game, but nothing spectacular. The story wouldn't impress a person above the age of 5 but that doesn't actually affect the gameplay so I didn't score this section.

Gameplay: 8/10
Replay Value: 6.6/10

A Platform franchise must have something new, something special, simple but at the same time innovative. Playing another Mario clone where you stomp on enemies isn't fun any more, we've already had enough of these games. Klonoa has a very nice feature that although simple is the core of the game and its main source of fun. Klonoa is a typical run and jump game, you move left and right, jump around, avoid traps, etc, etc, but instead of stomping on enemies you grab them with your ring and throw them. You can throw an enemy left or right but you can also throw him far away as if the game is no longer a 2D game, but what makes the game special is the fact that you can jump and throw the enemy down and do a second jump! In that ability is the whole game built. There are many, many parts of the game where you must think how to reach “that” place in order to take a certain item. You start by doing simple double jumps and near the end of the game you must do some crazy stuff that need extreme accuracy, speed and lots of patience! While most of the time Klonoa has a good learning curve it starts extreeemely easy and ends up being quite a tough game, not that you won't manage to clear it but it just feels a bit weird. I liked the challenging part of the game but most of it was too easy making me think that I was playing a game aimed at small kids. I think that the game needed to emphasize more in the that special ability of Klonoa and make it more puzzling to do some stuff, but instead it is extremely easy at first and gets fun near the end where things get tough…

There are 2 more problems. First of all when you save you also save your current amount of lives, something that can lead you to have only 1 life in the final level with no chance of finding more! Also Klonoa, unlike most platform games, when you press the jump button he jumps at the same height no matter how long you hold the button. This alone is not a problem but when you do hold the jump button Klonoa flies a bit in mid air, a skill that creates more problems than helping you, since it's a bit hard to avoid doing it when jumping leading to many deaths. Apart from the grab-jump thingy the game offers nothing else. No special power-ups, something every Platformer needs in order to be more enjoyable. The level design is good although it could be a bit better, (harder and with more secrets), but at least we have excellent boss fights that where very fun. Oh, you're supposed to save 6 creatures in each level, something I highly guarantee because once you save all creatures you unlock a great Mode where you'll need excellent skill in grabbing & jumping!

Graphics: 7.5/10
Design: 6.5/10

Klonoa is an uber-cute game, so people that can't stand cute, better leave this game at once. Besides all the cuteness the game looks very good. Klonoa travels through various magical\fairytale places, bright and colorful. No place had something really special, no character at all, but each area was designed well, then again too simple for me. The game is actually a hybrid between 3D levels and 2D sprites, well except from the bosses that where, for the most part 3D. Klonoa, is a good looking game but without something special for me, nothing distinctive like the Super Mario/Crash Bandicoot/Kirby/Sonic games.

Sound: 6.8/10
Music: 5/10

The sound effects are ok, but once again extremely cute and anime-like. When the characters talk instead of a real language all we hear is some weird gibberish like, “Kew pew, kew-kew pew kewww po pa ku KEW!?!”, ala The Sims something that I liked. The special effects are ok, typical platform fanfare and nothing more. The music is very simple and forgettable, I can't think of anything to say about it.

Positives:
-You can grab and use your enemies in various ways
-Good Boss fights
-The Extra Mode after completing the game 100%

Negatives:
-Should emphasize more in Klonoa's grab-jump ability
-The flying skill creates major problems
-Saving saves lives also, something that can lead to problems
-Starts very easy and suddenly it gets very hard

Also Play:
Kirby's Adventure (NES)
Klonoa (Wii)
Klonoa 2 (PS2)
Klonoa: Empire Of Dreams (GBA)
Rayman (PC, Playstation)
Super Mario World 2 (SNES)

Overall: 6.7/10

Klonoa is a disappointment not because it is a bad game but because it had the potential to be even better. At least its one of the best platformers of the Playstation. I think you will enjoy it if you are a platform fun but I don't guarantee that you'll love it as you would love a true classic…

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 08/10/09

Game Release: Klonoa: Door to Phantomile (US, June 1998)