Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy

Genre: 3D Platformer

Players: 1

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Review:

Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy is a 3D Platformer that was first released on PlayStation 2, GameCube, and the original Xbox in 2003, then ported to the PC in a remastered version of the game in 2017, with this remastered version brought to Nintendo Switch in 2019. This game has players alternating between the two titular characters in an adventure set in various locations inspired by ancient Egypt.

Despite being nearly two decades old, the visuals in Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy have aged extremely well. The game boasts an extremely smooth framerate, a crisp resolution, fantastic slightly-cartoony character designs and most notably some really fantastic animations. It is only the somewhat low-poly environments and an occasional low-resolution texture that give away this game’s age when it comes to visuals.

Unfortunately, the sound doesn’t come anywhere close to the same level of quality as the graphics here, with the game’s characters doing a lot of talking, but with no vocalisations beyond shouting when your character gets hurt. And as for the music, it manages to fit the atmosphere here, but there’s nothing really memorable about it.

As for the gameplay, this game is definitely a Platformer from the PlayStation 2/GameCube/Original Xbox era, and it shows. On the one hand, the actual Platforming gameplay is pretty solid, with a good amount of variety, some decent environmental puzzles, and some fun abilities that you’ll gradually unlock. On the other hand, this is a game that will have players in a constant wrestling match with the camera.

However, even beyond this, Sphinx has further issues. The game has a serious problem with poor signposting – it’s often unclear just where the player needs to go at any given point in the game, and a walkthrough guide should probably be considered mandatory to play this game. Yet despite the lack of clear goals, the game is constantly stopping the player to convey information, reminding them how to mechanically perform some action, telling them the name of whatever pickup they just got. Especially in the game’s first few hours, it is constantly pausing the action to take a second or two to tell you some banal information while refusing to reveal just what the heck you’re supposed to do with that information.

Making matters worse, all of this game’s text is unskippable, meaning you’ll be stuck with every bit of instruction, every item description, every conversation on-screen for a few seconds while you’re unable to do anything. And as a result of the unclear goals and the constant stopping of the gameplay to force players to read unhelpful text, this game’s pacing is at times agonizingly slow.

I really wanted to like Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy more than I did. Its visuals are surprisingly good and the gameplay here is solid when you can actually play it. It’s just a shame that the camera problems, poor signposting, and overall terrible pacing far too often overshadow the game’s better qualities. If you’re a fan of 3D Platformers with the patience for these issues, you may still find this game worthwhile, but most players will likely find this game’s frustrations hard to stomach.

tl;dr – Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy is an excellent remaster of a classic 3D Platformer whose graphics have aged extraordinarily well… but not its gameplay. While the core gameplay here has some good platforming and puzzles, this is often overshadowed by the game’s severe issues with its terrible camera, poor signposting, and horribly slow pacing. Players with a wealth of patience and a walkthrough guide may still find this game’s charms to outweigh its flaws, but most players will find those flaws difficult to ignore.

Grade: C+

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