Gnomes Vs. Fairies Demo

There was a time when platformers held a pretty important share of the market, mainly because that’s what the big studios developed as well. Franchises like Sonic and Super Mario were instant hits, so it was only natural that the developers continue to release what the public wanted. Nowadays, the genre is supported by indie developers almost exclusively, although that doesn’t mean the games are any less fun.

Gnomes Vs. Fairies is a third-person action-platformer with hack-and-slash elements and a bit of RPG in there as well, in which you have to slay monsters and explore challenging levels in order to collect coins and solve various missions. It’s a simple and classic formula, but it’s tougher than you might think to put it into practice, especially since the gameplay must be smooth and rewarding.

The story is nothing to write home about, but then again that’s hardly the purpose of a platformer. Hence, you play the role of a gnome who decides to go on a quest to free his people from the tyrannic fairy king. You can actually customize your character and decide whether you want a he or a she, as well as change the colors of the outfit. Other than that, you can pretty much ignore the story if you want to, because it’s of no real consequence to the gameplay.

Most of your in-game time is spent jumping from one thing to the other, as well as collecting coins and fighting enemies. The combat system is a tad too linear and annoying, in the sense that your character has to finish a long attack animation before he stops, which can cause you to fall off platforms. However, everything else is quite responsive and fun, especially since you can find a variety of interesting weapons along the way.

When it comes to graphics, the game was designed to come as close to the Nintendo 64 classics, which means that it features the same style and many of the same design ideas. This is great news for older gamers who remember where everything comes from, but it might disorient youngsters when it comes to level design. On the other hand, the soundtrack should please everyone, because it goes incredibly well with the action on the screen.

In the end, even if Gnomes Vs. Fairies is a very nicely designed game with a lot of content and smooth controls, it won’t appeal to everyone, although the developer probably understands that. Hence, it’s easy to overlook it if you are not a platformer fan, but it’s also one of the best games of the year if the genre appeals to you.