There was a point in time back in the 80s and 90s where LCD screen games were the hot item to own. Nintendo’s Game & Watch series was, of course, the pinnacle of the market, which inevitably led to many imitations from companies hoping to make a quick buck from the fad of these portable gaming machines.
Tiger was probably the one that capitalised the most with multiple cheap handhelds based on many licensed franchises. I remember owning a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles one as well as an incomprehensible version of Sonic the Hedgehog – it really was a blur! The biggest draw, though, was their price point – they were cheap, especially compared to a Game Boy or Game Gear, and it was fun to swap them with my playground mates.
So imagine my delight when I first saw Future Knight, a game heavily inspired by those cherished LCD games of old. Co-developed by Japanese-based Studio Koba (Narita Boy, Haneda Girl) and Aeternum Game Studios, with the aim to bring back the LCD aesthetics for modern-day players.
The narrative around the game centres on a lady who brainwashes the entire world, and you’ve been sent back in time to stop her. 8 hours before she does her dastardly deed, to be precise. It’s a bit Terminator, which, to be honest, I really dug. But if you’d like me to elaborate on the story beyond that point, then you’re out of luck, because apart from the basics, I had zero idea what was happening apart from the fact that Future Knight seemingly shares an uncanny resemblance to a soap character. It’s very over the top, and it’s way out there whatever is happening, but I feel much has been lost in translation, as there were so many bizarre narrative points that had no relation to the basic story or just generally made no sense.
The writing also adds to this confusion with poorly chosen words, with one particular icky one that made me cringe. There’s no swearing, and it’s all in good fun, but there were better words to use to describe sections of the plot than the ones chosen. It all just made for a nonsensical time that could have otherwise really pushed the game higher if more attention had been given to this part of the game. But saying this, the story really isn’t that important compared to the gameplay, and thankfully it’s the strongest part of Future Knight, even though this also gets quite weird and wacky.
If you’re a veteran of 2D shoot-em-ups, then you know what to expect. Move from left to right and pretty much shoot anything you see. Future Knight can also shoot from multiple angles and call on his melee powers for up-close attacks. He also has a limit to how much you can fire in succession, as the gun will overheat and you will have to wait until it cools down before gunning everyone down again.
The platforming is fine; this is no Celeste, but you’ll never be bored while playing. Though it still does go places, as you can use the benign tumour you carry around in your abdomen called Two More to access out-of-reach platforms and is the main mechanic in gaining the game’s collectables (three triangles in each stage). Two More can also use a limited amount of electricity to break black blockages and attack enemies. He also comes in handy if you lose all your health, as if you can keep Two More alive, Future Knight will respawn, and you can carry on where you left off by combining him with his friendly tumour. Hey, I did say it got quite bizarre!
Enemies also aid the surreal nature of the game, as you will come up against over-the-top characters that are out to stop you in whichever way they can. Some are more traditional, firing bullets at you from windows or from behind a manhole cover, but some just like throwing their heads at you before growing another one to, you know, throw at you. The bosses are quite a stand-out, with some fun designs and attack patterns, though even on normal difficulty, they were pretty easy to send back to whatever dark corner they came from.
Musically the game is yet again downright strange, especially with the style of music chosen. With overly cheery tunes and annoying instrumentation, employing mouth trumpets and other such nonsense, it didn’t sit well with me with regard to the action on screen. It also got pretty repetitive, especially as it only changes for every area, and with three stages in each area… Yeah, I was ready to move on.
I also need to mention the coins you pick up during each stage. At no point did I find anywhere to spend these coins, so I just kept racking up more and more until I had thousands banked. I was slightly mystified that they didn’t offer any kind of option to spend these, even if it was just for cosmetics or new weapons. It dulled my interest in collecting them to the point that I just didn’t bother. It was just another one to add to the strange decision list and another missed opportunity to make the game that little bit stronger.
This all leads to what I can only describe as the fever dream to end all fever dreams, and in all honesty I was quite disappointed that the developers took this route. Don’t get me wrong, I love a bit of strangeness to my video games, but for this one in particular I was hoping for something a little more routine. The hook is the game’s visuals, which they absolutely nail; it looks great, so they didn’t need anything else to make this a unique experience. In fact, the nonsensical tone takes away from that visual hook, as I was concentrating more on the surreal nature of everything. With a more toned-down narrative, enemies and soundtrack, this could have been something special, but at the moment it’s all just a peculiar and odd experience.
