Klonoa: Empire of Dreams

"Great platformer for those looking for a little more thinking than Mario"

Graphics: Ok, so you won't turn this game on and immediately wet your pants, but the graphics aren't a let down, either. I never played any of the other Klonoa games, so I can't make a comparison, but this game is very bright and colorful. The characters, like most games on GBA, are very fluidly animated. The backgrounds are a bit drab, but at least they don't get in the way. Also on the boss battles, the camera zooms out so that your character is incredibly small. Overall, the graphics are well executed, so I give it 8/10.

Sound: As with the graphics, nothing to get excited about, but it's there. There are the ''trademark'' Japanese character grunting sounds (read: squeaking) whenever Klonoa does much of anything. As I usually play with the volume off (don't want any detentions for playing it during school, right), I can't say too much, but when I do listen to it, it doesn't annoy me to the point of insanity. 7/10

Gameplay/Controls: This is where Klonoa shines. I guess this another platformer, although I'm not the greatest at categorizing things. But anyway, the game is pretty simple: press A to jump, and B to grab stuff and throw it. Also, if you are carrying something, you can press A a second time during a jump to double jump. That's all you need to know. New elements are introduced throughout the game at a pretty good pace, and make for an amazingly complex game. The puzzles require some thinking, which is good. There is no time limit, and no points, which works to your advantage, since sometimes you will spend a lot of time backtracking on the bigger and more complicated levels. If you mess up, don't worry: just pause and select retry, since you will and up at the last section you entered (which probably was pretty close to where you originally were), and continue your game.
The levels consist of collecting three stars to unlock the end door, and 30 gems to ''100%'' the level. The levels involve a lot of puzzle solving, so lesser minded gamers should steer clear of this. There are also cool snow boarding levels, which are a pain in the arse to 100%, but a lot of fun. Although you could go through a levels without finding all 30 or 100 gems, the levels are designed so that it is possible to do it all in one shot. This game is just generally fun, and once you start playing, you probably won't want to stop. This section of the game gets a full 10/10.

Replay Value: Well, it has no multi player like Mario, and it doesn't have a huge castle like Castlevania, but this game just keeps going. Once you beat the game, there's not much to do. You could go back and get all the gems, but I just made sure I did it right the first time. The game is moderately long and complex on its own, but once you beat it, you probably won't pick it up again. 5/10.

Klonoa: Empire of Dreams is a great game, and I don't think that averaging my scores (giving it a 7.5) would do it justice. So, I'll give it a 9/10 overall, just 'cause IT'S SO DARN FUN. I highly recommend this game to anyone who's not afraid to think every once in awhile while playing a game (read: SOLVE PUZZLES), and anyone that liked Mario, or any other 2-d platformer should play this game through.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/09/02, Updated 05/09/02