Designed for lovers of platform runners, this title stands out more for its artistic section than for what it finally offers in the playable.
There was a time when endless runners took over digital mobile game stores. After all, it was and still is a plausible solution to overcome the lack of physical controls. Why force touch on the screen for a task that is based on constantly pressing a button? Even Nintendo, with Super Mario Run, adhered to this fashion – in the good sense of the word – of the platform genre where we do not stop running and where, in some cases, there is no end other than our own death. EarthNight is where it fits best, on mobile phones, and it is perhaps on consoles where it can least shine; although it is undeniable that your proposal has a really interesting potential.
A talent not fully exploited
The first time we met EarthNight was at that presentation of games for Apple Arcade, the on-demand video game service for iOS devices. Thus, we played it, we enjoyed it and we could contrast it with the consequent version for Nintendo Switch that we have been able to analyze. And yes, we were dazzled by his artistic section, which looks like an animated sequence of illustrations in full color; Fortunately, in that precious design and its abstract as well as strange staging, a precise platform game is hidden. The other side of the coin is that, at the end of the day, it does not contribute anything to the genre and can end up leaving a feeling of emptiness with the passage of hours.
On a mechanical level, EarthNight does nothing that we haven't seen. Its plot premise is that human beings have been dominated by dragons with a clearly Asian design. Only a couple of individuals, aware of their capabilities, present themselves as the alternative for the salvation of the human species: Sydney and Stanley. The first, a young woman of African American appearance, very agile and determined. On the other, a somewhat older man with a beard that is obvious. Our objetive? Starting from space, which seems the only possible refuge at the moment, jump into the void to fall on these dragons and defeat them by hitting them or making mistakes by themselves. The visual design of the scenes comes close to the spectacular; as much for the outline of some phases as for the color palette used, which renounces white glitters and opts for light colors, as if it were colored with wax paints.
Procedural design to ensure surprise and replayability
Every time we fall on one of these dragons, the race will begin on its back that will end on its head. If we succeed, there will be a kind of minigame where we can eliminate the dragon. In total, 15 different dragons and several dozen different enemies, not all equally inspired or moving. In fact, some seem more like a hindrance on the road than anything else, which leaves us with the feeling that they have not been exploited enough. Depending on the character we choose, the abilities are one or the other, but there is something that we loved: the levels are generated randomly.
This, on paper, already guarantees us one thing, and that is that each game will be different, it will feel completely new and, in essence, there will be something new waiting for us. It is also a double-edged sword, because sometimes we will find much more difficult levels than others; or some excessively easy. It can be seen that it has been thought from the beginning as a mobile game due to how short all the games are, something that forces you to think quickly, measure to the millimeter each jump and master the so-called timing so as not to fall or be hit by a kind of giant toad lying on the clouds.
Along the way, a multitude of collectibles, obstacles that can make us lose health and jumps, many jumps between the five layers that divide this atmosphere before reaching Earth. It is this, in fact, that we must master: the cadence of those jumps. We are in space and gravity does not respond to the same logic as when we are on planet Earth. We catch height fast, but we fall slow. The fun is in chaining jumps on the enemies, combos that will give more points and better rewards. As the hours go by, we see that each type of dragon has different patterns and weaknesses, so it's time to study and think about which creature we are facing when we reach the end of each phase.
EarthNight
We don't quite understand why EarthNight conveys the feeling of being in a hurry. Hurry to finish, not to give the player room to think. We explain: the game would not be easier by giving up a little more time for the final confrontations. There is no time to enjoy them. At the slightest mistake, we are lost and we will have to start over. There is a certain grace and gratifying feeling when we take down a dragon, but the price to pay if we are defeated — in a matter of seconds — is to start again from scratch. It is shocking, however, that he relies so much on the degree of addiction that the rest of his approach can awaken, which is the endless runner part.
Something that is well designed is the difficulty curve: the closer we are to the ground, the more difficult the level will be. And yes, the last layer, the fifth, is quite a challenge that not many times we can overcome the first. In any case, it would be unfair to accuse that we die a lot considering that he is, in fact, a roguelike, the problem comes more in the effort to make the games excessively short.
In our opinion, Sydney is a much more interesting character to use, although it would not have been a bad idea for more types of selectable characters to give more variety. For the rest, we have loved its soundtrack, which we recognize we have heard more than once when we were not playing it, a compendium of chiptune remixes that gives that retro touch that suits these types of games so well. It rages to think that EarthNight is simply notable for some of the design decisions, which punish excessively without giving scope, unlike others like Bit.Trip, who knew how to better balance things in the platform genre; or others like Nuclear Throne or The Binding of Isaac, who although they are absolutely different, knew how to better measure the pulse of the player's patience with an authentic and rewarding challenge. EarthNight is satisfactory, but it stays halfway.
CONCLUSION
EarthNight feels fresh, agile, very fast and with a spectacular soundtrack, but it contributes little to the genre of platforms, nor to that of the veteran side of endless runner. Its successes are undeniable, starting from an artistic section where the soundtrack surprises with its catchy chords and chiptune trend. The problem is that, although its procedural roguelike design guarantees that each game is a new adventure, the way it has to pose the final minigame against the dragons we face are too short, with severe punishments and the feeling that artificial intelligence plays with an excessive advantage. For the rest, it is ideal on consoles like Nintendo Switch; although it is also enjoyed on a mobile phone.
THE BEST
- The design of the dragons and the general approach
- Artistically brilliant: soundtrack and visual direction
- Sydney, a character who likes to control
WORST
- It seems too short and not too varied
- The fight against the dragons has room for improvement
- It's not fair when it comes to penalizing the player
Right
It is not the latest or most original, nor does it have the best execution, but it can be fun if you like the genre. Good, but upgradeable.
