Choreo: Legend of Loco

Lovecraft inspired many other writers over the years, and also plenty of movies and video games that borrow some of his concepts. It’s not difficult to see why so many people draw inspiration from his creations, given the fact that very few other writers have managed to create such haunting monsters, but every adaptation needs some originality as well in order to set itself apart.

Choreo: Legend of Loco is a 2D platformer in which you play the role of a man with a guitar as he explores a dark and strange world in an attempt to save it from a couple of ancient entities. The game also features a few musical elements, while also being relatively difficult in terms of platforming, given the fact that there are plenty of sections that require good coordination in order to be overcome.

The game world is inspired by Lovecraft in many ways, but especially when it comes to the main villain, which is an elder being summoned by a couple of cultists. As mentioned before, your character uses music to his advantage, so the guitar comes in handy in a variety of situations. You can use it to defeat enemies, as well as to gather followers that unlock more instruments for the soundtrack.

What this essentially means is that you start with only a guitar tune in the beginning, so the other instruments only enter the picture once you collect the followers along the way to join your band. The levels themselves get faster and trickier later on too, so the soundtrack is synchronized with the action on the screen, which is indeed a nice touch.

As for the controls, they are obviously important in a fast-paced platformer, and they seem to be very snappy and responsive in this case. The level design is often surprising, on the other hand, so you may need a few warm-up runs before you are able to clear all the jumps in one go. Lastly, the graphics are quite impressive as well, especially since the backdrops are very colorful and detailed.

Even if it’s not too friendly with beginners, Choreo: Legend of Loco is still a very polished indie production, and the dynamic music component really helps with the atmosphere as well. Hence, it’s worth a try if you can cope really well with frustration.