Slime-san Demo

Fast-paced platformers are some of the oldest forms of entertainment in video games, which means that the genre has had decades to evolve and improve. Naturally, developers did their best to come up with new ideas over the decades, but then again there are only so many things you can add to such a simple formula. New levels and harder challenges are always welcome, on the other hand, so you can have a good time even without revolutionary mechanics.

Slime-san is a fast-paced arcade platformer with simple controls and an even simpler idea: get to the end of each level as quickly as possible. In order to do so, you have to jump, avoid nasty traps and keep moving at a steady pace, especially since there’s a wave of acid that rises as you go through the levels. You can also collect certain items to increase your score, although this part is usually not mandatory.   The action takes place in the stomach of a huge worm, which is why acid is a threat you constantly have to watch out for. As for the gameplay, your primary activity is jumping, but sometimes that’s just not enough. Hence, you must also dash in order to go through some of the sections, not to mention the fact that you can also slow down time in order to negotiate tricky obstacles.

Just in case you manage to finish all the levels and run out of ways to enjoy the single player mode, the game also comes with co-op and competitive multiplayer modes, which should extend the fun considerably. More modes are unlocked later on as well, including Speed Run and Boss Rush, both of which use slightly different gameplay rules and make Slime-san feel exciting again.   Lastly, the controls are obviously crucial in a game such as this one, because few things are more annoying than slow input in a fast-paced platformer. Thankfully, this is not the case here, and it’s that much easier to go through the game using a gamepad. As for the graphics, the retro style should resonate with the veterans of the genre, but it’s colorful enough to be appreciated by younger gamers too.

When it’s all said and done, Slime-san is definitely worth your time if you like fast-paced platformers, but it can also be a tad too frustrating for newcomers. Hence, it should fit perfectly into its particular niche and even attract a few new people to the genre, thanks to the polished mechanics and huge amounts of content.