izigame.me

The perfect word that comes to mind with TY 4 is the same word for the Rocket Knight reboot: Bittersweet.
If you are a die-hard fan, you'll probably put up with this game's more glaring issues. This game is not bad; it's very derivative of the genre and mediocre as a result, which is sad because I am going to suggest some ideas that might have had better execution.
At the end of the day, people will ultimately forget TY 4 now that Krome has started remastering the first three games on Steam. Funding TY 1 - 3 is what the game will be remembered for what it did right.
Proof of claim: http://prntscr.com/8g2dog (In response to a post about an HD collection. TY 1 is now put through Early Access on Steam.)

TY 4 Really Isn't the Next Sequel

This game was originally the Ty the Tasmanian Tiger (10th Anniv) on Windows 8's store and released in 2013. Why the devs decided to call this game the fourth game, I don't know. The cynic in me says hype and marketing.
They could've easily made this game a spin-off title. But that might confuse new people (and yet the plot and the title number 4 will confuse anyone who hasn't played the games). So, the only reason I can think of is because this game takes place after 3, thus it's called 4. (That or the GBA games.)

Looks the Same, But Doesn't Feel the Same

First off, I want to make this distinction: The art of Ty 4 is great, the animation is average. And I think a lot of the gameplay refinements are lacking because of the animation quality. Ty 4 keeps the aesthetics that fits the series.
However, unlike say the spin-off 2D Rayman games, the animation is (or looks like) tweening (moving parts of a still image). This is why the animation looks stiff when you throw your boomerangs or when you swim your whole character moves up and down, not rotating. It makes the game feel stiff when the controls are decent. As a result, the game plays like something I'd find on a site like Newgrounds.
If you don't know what I'm talking about, compare Ty 4 to Rayman here: https://31.media.tumblr.com/3fd0792f9289cf903259dc5fa4e78cf5/tumblr_nk4ozy4YWs1tv9q1qo1_400.gif
Of course UbiArt has a lot more production value behind them than Krome Studios nowadays. That is why the game was made in 2D. I'm not saying the game is bad because it's not pretty enough.
My point is that Ty 4 has competition that offers more visual fidelity, so if they want to grab people's attention they have to do something better, namely gameplay.

A Dimension Lost, Nothing Gained

Which leads me to my biggest problem of the game, there's nothing innovative of its gameplay to warrant a 2D return. There are no unique 2D mechanics or gameplay elements added in to Ty's formula. You still play the same character with the same glide and throw abilities, just in another dimension.
For some fans, that's enough to buy the game; for newcomers, it'll feel like a shallow experience and this game shouldn't be your first exposure to the series.
I don't want to keep mentioning Rayman, but I want to illustrate a point: When Rayman came back to 2D, they added in an ability he couldn't have in the 3D games, wall-running. Not only would that be a camera issue for 3D but it'd probably break the game as a result. In 2D, however, the mechanic was easily implented in the level-design.
This game needed to do something similar. Either new mechanics or make Ty fit a new genre to make his 2D re-debut familiar and interesting to fans, and something worth playing for new players. And what confuses me is that they didn't make this game into a Metroidvania title.
Take, for example, the boomerang system. You are given three plot-specific boomerangs that are needed for the main-fetch quests (Fire, Ice and Shock). They are used to break down their opposite-elemental barrier or interact with an object, and even then they're more often for extra collectables.
The only time this mechanic ever becomes interesting is when you use the Blizzard Rang to freeze a log on a waterfall to make a platform. The game needed more creative uses for these plot-boomerangs, as well as the other ones, if they wanted to make them more enjoyable.
Besides the given ones, there are also purchasable boomerangs (in-game purchases, not real) that give you some benefits. Some more useful than others, while others entirely useless.
You have four or five boomerangs for fighting. The Chaos Boomerang is my personal favorite as it explodes most annoying enemies and takes out multiple enemies with each throw. (It's also between Fire and Ice, which is easy to switch out.) Out of all of the bonus boomerangs, the Cryptic Boomerang is the only one you need to care about (if you want to 100% this game). It lets you find hidden platforms, which you cannot jump on without equiping them even if you know they are there.
All these boomerangs feel added in for flavoring, and you only need to buy them once. They're always in your inventory.
But imagine if the game had open-ended level-design on a 2D environment that required you to EARN those Boomerangs (like the Thundereggs in Ty 1) and then you needed to use those new boomerangs to unlock more with the rewards steadily getting better and more interesting. (Ex. Strider)
Or what if those extra boomerangs were purchasable and you could choose which ones you wanted and it'd shape your experience every time you played, and they had not one or two uses but influenced the bosses you fought or created new types of platforms as a result (i.e. the frozen log)? (Ex. Mega Man or Shovel Knight)
Or what if you had different playable characters (not skins for fans) that had unique abilities and the game required synergy between the team to get through tough obstacles or challenges, which could also be used to traverse the 2D open landscape? (Ex. Castlevania 3)
All of these ideas are off the top of my head, and any one of them could've made this game more memorable or worth the transition.

A Platformer By Any Other Name

I wasn't expecting anything genre-breaking or the second coming from this game, but I expected something to keep me going besides my nostalgia alone.
The game is a platformer without real punishment. You have infinite lives, you can take multiple hits, you get tons of spawn-points, and there's not even a score-system for superficial punishment. The only thing you lose is time, and the game likes to pad itself out in that regards.
The levels are always "Do Something" three times as separate areas with meaningless side-objectives and extra collectibles for only bragging rights. The collectibles do not unlock anything special, and they're not required unless it's the main objective.
The boss-fights are just there. First one had me stuck because I forgot about the power-attack, but the rest were more obvious. (That final room where you fight Cass is annoying because as the screen rotates you can't easily tell if you can stand where you are or if you'll just fall to the other side of the screen).
I won't touch on the story because it makes no sense to someone who has played only the first game. (Why does Boss Cass hire Kangeroos if he wants to destroy all mammals?)

Needs More Polish


Ty's hitbox is unclear at times. (Especially on the whale)
Stiff movement
If the platform moves fast enough, Ty will slide off his own.
When you pick stuff up, Ty can still be hit.
Enemies go through the walls on land and sea, sometimes hidden in the background. (Like NES games.) Your attacks do not.
SFX on Boomerangs and enemies can be ear-grating. (Same sound effect)
Crickey, Ty gets more knockback than me!