izigame.me

While many remain stuck in the quagmire of "are video games art?" the actual artists who have been making art out of video games for years have lapped the naysayers by decades. Of course, even among those enlightened few who realize the potential of the medium, it's incredibly rare to find talents like the people behind this game. People who are so committed to a vision, so doggedly determined to realize it as faithfully as possible regardless of the limitations and setbacks, people who aren't afraid to be unorthodox; Judero is the glorious final result of a few years' tireless effort, and it has obviously paid off.
If you are unfamiliar with the Jack King-Spooner mindset, I will tell you: you are not wrong to be wowed by the strange design of this game. The unconventional visuals are actually the obvious part--hell, any game could do that--but the real rarity here is how the chassis underneath the silly, hokey figurines is also deeply inspired. It's not hard to see the DNA of some of our beloved 2000s console classics flowing through these veins, and the progression flows incredibly well. It would be easy to take a concept with lofty, poetry-slam ambitions like this and consider the actual gameplay to be an afterthought. Here, there's a nice variety of enemies, collectibles, and environments to interact with, all of which stick around only for the exact amount of time for their novelty to wear off. Or for the combat to get way too easy, whichever one.
That's a big part of the charm, though: the brevity. A man who writes as densely as Mr. King-Spooner could freely indulge himself to make us sit through Chaucer until we beg for the sweet mercy of death, but the game never once overstays itself. The equal-parts hilarious and touching "cutscenes" throughout the story immerse you in the wacky world only enough to keep you asking questions, and you are allowed your own leisure to engage with the ontological musings of its denizens at will. Now, I recommend you do, because a game this small in scope is, in turn, packed to the gills with texture. From minigames to limericks to entire albums' worth of music you might not experience if you don't look, I say it's 100% worth your while to wring this thing out for all its worth. The superb level design will make it feel way easier than you expect to find all the hidden bits!
This wretched industry would heal in an instant if every game was as pure as this. Every inch has been checked and double-checked to make sure it puts you in the right mood, and that mood is not something that can be described through mere words. I highly, highly recommend that anyone reading this play this game if you're skeptical, and get a sense (if you haven't got one already) of what a well-executed vision can look like within the format. All it takes is creativity, commitment, and a good team, and you can make anything you feel into something somewhat tangible. Isn't that magical?
Hats off to everyone involved for giving this to us. It'll make you laugh, think, feel, maybe cry, probably laugh some more, and then probably shoot yourself because you got to the very end and realized you missed a single bestiary page. My favorite part: the ape's poem. Well, no--it's the soundtrack. But second to that is the ape's poem. I love the ape.
Shouts out to Francine Bridge (@witnesstheabsurd on twitter aka x.com the everything website) for being on the list of kickstarter supporters for this. She art directed that Slave Zero X game a bit ago, if you missed it