Wild Run

Good coordination and fast reflexes are needed to have proper fun with a runner game, otherwise the experience gets repetitive and boring in a rush. On the other hand, everyone can start playing right away, because they very simple learning curves and gameplay mechanics, at least most of the time. The stages get tougher and tougher along the way, which is why so many give up sooner or later.

Wild Run is a unique runner/platformer mashup in which you have to switch between three animals and use their different skills in order to navigate the treacherous environments without getting stuck or hurt in the process. It’s not very difficult at first, but the learning curve works like a whip, meaning that it strikes very hard all of a sudden, especially if you are not used to the genre.

The three animals are a bear, a rabbit and a bird, and you play with each one of them separately in the first three levels. Hence, the bear is big and strong, which allows it to go through certain obstacles without getting stuck. The rabbit is smaller and more agile, which means that it can go through tight places and jump higher. Lastly, the bird can fly, which means that it can avoid certain obstacles entirely.

After the first three levels, the game forces you to switch between the animals many times over the course of each stage, because the environment oscillates wildly. Hence, certain sections can only be passed if you play as a bear, while others are impossible unless you switch to the bird and fly over everything. Naturally, these fast changes in pace can be too much for some players.

As for the graphics, the retro pixel style is quite expressive, but you shouldn’t expect anything too great either. In fact, the tiles are pretty standard and unimpressive, since there’s nothing but the ground, the clouds and a few objects in between. On the other hand, you barely have time to notice all these things when you have to concentrate on everything else.

When it’s all said and done, Wild Run is at least original if nothing else, but the gameplay is fun enough to keep players entertained for a while. You can always improve your score by picking up more crystals every time.