Super Magbot

Genre: Platformer

Players: 1

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Review:

Super Magbot is a challenging Platformer released on PC and Nintendo Switch in 2021. This game puts players in control of a robot collecting star pieces on various planets to avert a catastrophe. To do so, players will have to make use of the robot’s dual-colored magnets to work their way through the game’s levels.

Super Magbot’s presentation is pure old-school charm, with some really nice pixel art visuals and a super-catchy chiptune soundtrack (unfortunately, I can’t find individual tracks to link you to, but here is the full soundtrack, if you’re curious)). Everything about this game exudes a pitch-perfect old-school style that does a great job capturing that nostalgic feel of classic 8-bit and 16-bit games.

The gameplay here is pretty compelling too. Players will tackle a series of levels they need to progress through without the ability to jump, and must instead use magnets to attract and repel their way to their goal. The L and R buttons each have a corresponding magnet color (blue and red), and each reacts to magnetic blue and red blocks appropriately, with the same color repelling, and opposite colors attracting. Players will need to make use of these abilities, often in quick succession, to make it to the goal in each level.

This makes for some clever and fairly unique platforming, but it also presents a problem – at any time, players have two buttons that essentially do the exact opposite thing from one another, and based purely on the context of what blocks they’re interacting with, those actions can change back and forth. As a result, trying to keep all of this straight can feel a bit like trying to pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time, and it’s difficult to make it feel like second nature. The game is thankfully forgiving of failure and death, quickly booting you back into the level to try again, but it can often feel like you’re fighting muscle memory to try to do what each level wants you to.

While its mechanics may not come naturally to some players, Super Magbot is nevertheless a fun Platformer overall that offers up a fun twist on navigating its levels. This is definitely not a game for players who aren’t down for a challenge, but those who enjoyed the likes of games like Celeste will want to give this game a look.

tl;dr – Super Magbot is a challenging platformer that has players using magnets to attract and repel their way through levels. The presentation here is pure old-school nostalgia, and the gameplay is inventive, but it’s also pretty challenging and difficult to make this game’s mechanics feel like second nature. Not for everyone, but if you enjoy a challenge, you should give it a look.

Grade: B

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2021 Game Awards:

Runner-Up: Best Platformer

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