Yoku's Island Express
Aug. 17th, 2021 08:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
schneefinkFour days ago I started playing Yoku's Island Express, a pinball (!) ~metroidvania game. It was on sale so I tried out the free demo and then bought the game immediately. It's so charming! The gameplay is fun, I like the art, the map is cool, the level design/puzzles are well done, the music fits, the plot is decent, it's just the right degree of relaxing with some excitement. I enjoyed it a lot.
You play a dung beetle who arrives on an island to become its new postmaster, but the island's god has been attacked and Yoku has to deliver letters to all the island's leaders to invite them to a gathering to heal the deity. On the way Yoku makes new friends and gets new abilities and discovers new areas and side quests. There are many delightful details – the fast travel system is the "bee line" shooting Yoku through the sky, for example, and you can customize the ball a dozen different ways. ("Jewel Skull" might be my favorite.) The "currency" is fruit that you gather as the ball (with Yoku attached) bounces around.
I got to the credits after a little over five hours and got to the epilogue after a little under twelve hours (I did use some online guides to find the last few wickerlings.) Both the first and the second ending did not disappoint. (I made a spoilery Tumblr post about the epilogue with visuals.) After twelve and a half hours I completed the game at 100% (I'm still missing 3 Steam achievements that I may or may not get around to later.)
Here is a trailer; it showcases many different areas and skills and people you only meet later, so if you are interested I would recommend just checking out the demo instead.
You play a dung beetle who arrives on an island to become its new postmaster, but the island's god has been attacked and Yoku has to deliver letters to all the island's leaders to invite them to a gathering to heal the deity. On the way Yoku makes new friends and gets new abilities and discovers new areas and side quests. There are many delightful details – the fast travel system is the "bee line" shooting Yoku through the sky, for example, and you can customize the ball a dozen different ways. ("Jewel Skull" might be my favorite.) The "currency" is fruit that you gather as the ball (with Yoku attached) bounces around.
I got to the credits after a little over five hours and got to the epilogue after a little under twelve hours (I did use some online guides to find the last few wickerlings.) Both the first and the second ending did not disappoint. (I made a spoilery Tumblr post about the epilogue with visuals.) After twelve and a half hours I completed the game at 100% (I'm still missing 3 Steam achievements that I may or may not get around to later.)
Here is a trailer; it showcases many different areas and skills and people you only meet later, so if you are interested I would recommend just checking out the demo instead.
