88 Heroes Preview
After watching the creative trailer for 88 Heroes I was interested in seeing what it had to offer. 88 Heroes, aptly named for the 88 different heroes you will play as, offers an interesting challenge for players around the world. Players will have just 88 seconds, to beat each of the 88 levels of the game. As such, this 2D platformer is quite charming, both in its unique premise and silly humor.
So what do the Avengers, the Justice League, X-Men, and other superheroes all have in common? They’re teams of the most formidable superheroes the world has to offer of course! But what happens when these heroes are too busy doing important, world-saving things? The team of 88 heroes take on the role as the defenders of our universe, in all of the weird and useless ways only they can! These 88 heroes have been gifted with the most useless abilities you may ever come across, and others with none at all. If we’re being honest though, this is part of the challenge and the fun!
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“Each of the levels is set up with Dr H8 and his goons watching through a TV screen, with a constant view of the action.”
As you can probably tell, there is a focus on the number 8. Players will face off against Dr H8, who is on a mission to destroy the world on August 8, 1988, unless he receives 88 octillion dollars within 88 hours! Yes, that’s a lot of eights! Each of the levels is set up with Dr H8 and his goons watching through a TV screen, with a constant view of the action. This 2D chaotic, side-scrolling platformer is seen through the lense of a camera, watching Dr H8 watch us through his TV. This concept is not unlike Inception, as it is a screen within a screen.
There is a lot of game to be played in 88 Heroes, with a few different game modes, 88 levels, a few boss battles, and 88 different, randomly assigned heroes. A new hero is introduced into the game after a level is completed, or when the previous hero has died, whichever happens first. The pixelated graphics really bring the whole game together, showing off the fact that Bitmap Bureau and Rising Star Games really just wanted to make a simple, quirky game.
The controls and game mechanics are smooth and simple, making 88 Heroes really about the silly, uncomplicated story of these heroes on their quest to defeat the evil doctor! That is not to say the game is not frustrating, because believe me, the more you play, the more frustrated you will get. This is not a bad thing really, but a necessary part of the game. Some heroes are useless, and it is in your best interest to guide them to their death as quickly as possible, in the hope that the next character will be way better! Of course, sometimes you may end up with someone even worse, so you will just have to rinse and repeat.
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“It doesn’t seem like there are any real changes that need to be made to 88 Heroes before the full release at the end of this month.”
There was nothing inherently wrong with this game, other than its repetitive nature, which is only so because it is a 2D platformer. The random design does however, add variety to the typical 2D formula. There are also four different worlds in which players will get to play across, and no two levels are the same. It doesn’t seem like there are any real changes that need to be made to 88 Heroes before the full release at the end of this month. So, if you’re looking for a fun and silly game to play for hours, this is the one for you!
