I’m a big fan of 2D action platformers, and part of my love for the genre is because of Mega Man X. When a game pays tribute to that series, you know it’s bound to do something right. Berserk Boy takes a lot of inspiration from Mega Man X, and Sonic with a focus on speed and fast-paced combat. In my Berserk Boy review, I’ll take a look at this retro-styled platformer, and if it’s worth your time.
Kei and Fiore
In Berserk Boy, you play a rookie hero named Kei, who after a chance encounter merges with a Berserk Orb that grants him movement and combat abilities. He runs into a powerful talking bird called Fiore that serves as one-half of his movement abilities. It’s a standard Mega Man plot where an evil scientist, Dr. Genos in this case, wants to recreate the world in his vision, and you have to face off against his posse of elemental henchmen one by one and gather their abilities to save the world.
You’ll meet multiple characters throughout your journey, save civilians, and uncover the secrets of the Berserk Orb. It’s not a complex story, and it doesn’t have to be. You have a simple motivation, and you get to look cool while you take on robotic baddies, and dash through levels.
My only problem with the story delivery is the audio mixing. For some reason, the few lines of voiced dialogue have very low volume compared to the music and regular sound effects. It’s a bit awkward, and while the subtitles help, you can barely make out what they’re saying.
Berserk Orbs
Kei’s first Berserk Orb lets him rapidly dash around in multiple directions, multiple times. He can dash into enemies, and create this energy string that can be activated at will, and do devastating damage. This is a really fun combat mechanic because you can chain attacks in succession, and if you time and position it right, Kei will go through multiple enemies in a flash. It’s very satisfying to execute, and the visual feedback does a great job of conveying speed, and precision.
This is a game about speed, and once you get used to how movement works, you’ll go through levels without breaking a sweat. My favorite parts are when there are multiple enemies in an area, and I barely touch the ground, because I’m dashing in and out of enemies, and using the burst attack to lift and push them around.
This is just one Berserk Orb, and there are plenty more that change up how gameplay, and traversal work complementing the levels, enemies, and area bosses. I’ll say this much, it does take a while for the game to really shine though, but once you get to mission three, it starts to really click. It does get a bit easier once you get the hang of things, and I didn’t have much trouble against most bosses but it’s a lot of fun either way.
Presentation and Soundtrack
I think Berserk Boy looks great for the most part. The character designs are varied, and the animation work for the attacks and movement abilities especially are fantastic. I think the levels are a bit uneven though, and it can be a bit hard to sometimes tell what a platform is. Sometimes there is just empty space, or a random wall that feels too large, but none of this really detracts from the experience.
The bosses look great, and each with their a unique look that complements their fighting style, and orb abilities. Finally, the soundtrack is by Tee Lopes, and it’s another banger. The tracks are full of energy and fit well with the game’s fast pace. I’ll be listening to this one while I work that’s for sure.
Closing Thoughts
Overall, I think Berserk Boy is a really fun game with a great combat and movement system that leverages the Berserk Orbs to provide an experience that’s expertly paced and full of fun enemies to fight. The presentation is great for the most part, but there are some inconsistencies here and there that sometimes get in the way of the pacing. Its soundtrack is a blast and complements the energy of the game at all times.
What did you think of our review of Berserk Boy? Share what you think about it in the comments below.
This review is based on the PC version of Berserk Boy. The key was provided by Lost in Cult.
