Zool Redimensioned Review (The Midnight Run)
I remember growing up with Zool~ <3
Zool fuckin Sucked.
Zool was a garishly colorful, fidgety 16-bit platformer, that moved way too fast, and had a camera jammed so deep up dat ass, that you never had any reaction time to just about anything happening on screen. What made it even worse however, was that a game that clearly based itself on momentum & speed required you to slow down and explore these extremely large maps in order to track down 3 magical mcguffins to gain access to the exit. Combine all that with tiny enemies and obstacles you often don't see, a countdown timer, and a trash checkpoint system, and yeah... THAT was Zool.
Fast Forward 30 years however and Sumo Digital Academy decided they saw something more in the little green goblin. And you know what? I supposed they were right, because what we have here is a surprisingly fun and enjoyable experience! Remade from the ground up, Sumo took the things that worked about the original, tossed what didn't, and made all the "in-betweens" optional, and thus, less frustrating. Zool Redimensioned fixes the controls by giving Zool better responsiveness, a double jump, & a slightly less twitchy control scheme. This makes jumping, platforming, and enemy bop-ering, feel that much better. But whats really shocking is that when you combine those refined controls with the all new zoomed out camera, you can actually see what the fuck you're doing! and... it's fun! It means Zool can finally use the speed and momentum he was given all those years ago, but now in an effective way that also makes traversing the land far more smooth and fun! It also means exploring and finding those mcguffins mentioned earlier is less of a nightmare, which to be honest, in this version of the game is not even an issue to begin with because now its totally optional! As is the cute little newly added multiplayer party mode, that you can play with all zero of your other friends that even know wtf this is!
Look, is Zool a must have? No. But if the idea of a short, momentum-based, collectothon-ish, 16-bit, euro platformer, sounds interesting to you, then thanks to this remake you can certainly do worse. It can be a bit frustrating, but it can also be a bit fun, so as long as you go into it with expectations in check & don't mind the ugly af colors, Id say Zool Redimensioned is a pretty damn short but decently fun time. If you're on the fence, maybe wait for a sale. I got my copy for just about $2, and I think at such a low price it makes for a fun afternoon with an ugly little goblin.
//Straight to the point//
The Goods:
-Improved controls.
-Improved checkpoint system.
-Zoomed out camera.
-Collectible objects previously required to complete stages are no longer required.
-Added Party Mode for multiplayer mini games.
-Bonus emulated Mega Drive version.
-Fun for speed runners.
The not so goods:
-Still ugly af colors.
-Some enemies & hazards are still far too small.
-Ending feels...weak.
-Doesn't come with Zool 2.