Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series from Monkeycraft Co. Ltd and Bandai Namco Entertainment is a remastered release of Klonoa: Door to Phantomile and Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil. For those who don’t know, Klonoa is a 3D side-scrolling action games from Namco that released way back in 1997. The original game came out at a time when platformers were dominating the video game industry and Klonoa’s colourful cast of characters added to the diversity of the genre.
Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series
The Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series release brings back the original Klonoa and its sequel, Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil in fully remastered, crisp visual glory. Newcomers to the franchise can dive right into this and know that they are getting two very solid, very well done 3D side-scrolling platformer games. The ageless video game design mechanics that Namco used here can fit right in in any modern day title since the gameplay is great even now in 2022.
Players will take on the role of Klonoa in both games. The first game is extremely short and you can get through this within 4 hours or so. Klonoa comes across a magical ring which houses a spirit named Huepow. Klonoa and Huepow team up and have to work together to stop an evil antagonist known as Ghadius from turning the dream world of Phantomile into a nightmare.
Players will move left and right in a side-scrolling manner and will be able to jump and fire off a wind bullet. Enemies can be grabbed by Klonoa by using the wind bullet and can be fired out as a projectile. You can also use a grabbed enemy to double jump and reach higher platforms or objects. Klonoa will collect gems in levels and there are hidden collectibles in eggs as well as Phantomilians to rescue.
The game features a lot of side-routes in levels and there’s plenty of gems which require you to do some limited backtracking to collect. This does encourage replayability though because completionists will want to collect every single gem and collectible in a level.
Level Design Masterclass
Klonoa 1 is over in no time flat and you could honestly finish it in one sitting if you breeze through the levels without caring too much about the gems and collectibles.
Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil expands upon Klonoa’s adventure significantly. This game comes in at around 7 to 8 hours long and features a heck of a lot more content. Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil’s gameplay is pretty much the same as the first title but features expanded levels with more gems and collectibles. Yes it’s more of the same but the sequel has levels that are so ridiculously well designed that you’ll want to try to get all the gems because it’s so enjoyable to play through these levels.
Namco really outdid themselves here with platforming excellence being a key aspect of both titles. The level designs implemented in both titles are almost perfect with the distribution of enemies, gems, collectibles and mini-puzzles worked in so well. It’s all balanced out and never causes frustration. Klonoa 2’s boss battles in particular are exceptionally well-designed too and feature mechanics that work so well they could easily be copied into modern day titles. Players will have to simply memorise a boss’s attack pattern and try to defeat them using Klonoa’s own abilities. The boss’s never come across as cheap and while they can be a bit challenging at times given their movesets, once you’re able to read their attacks and see what it is you have to do, the payoff you get from defeating them is excellent.
Klonoa 1 and 2 both have a soundtrack which is filled with some really upbeat and catchy tunes and the game’s music is perfect for its platforming and whimsical nature. Unfortunately there isn’t proper voice acting here. All the characters vocalise unknown words but this adds to the game’s charm. Not every fantasy game has to have everyone speaking perfect English after all and it’s quite endearing hearing the character’s speaking unknown yet rather cute vocalisations instead.
Graphically, both titles look fantastic with the visuals having been cleaned up and enhanced for this collection. Playing through the first game and then second one, you wouldn’t even really be able to tell the difference between the two because they’ve been visually standardized and both look amazing. The dream world that Klonoa inhabits features some truly spectacular environments and level design and players will want to push on ahead to discover more.
Klonoa Phantasy Reverie is a masterpiece of gaming history packaged for the modern audience. Newcomers can dive right into this collection of games and have a blast. Fans who played the original titles back in the day also have the opportunity to play them again now in fully remastered glory. There’s also a fast forward button in the game so you can speed up conversations but it’s not recommended to use this since you’ll miss out on what characters have to say.
Final Verdict
Overall, Klonoa Phantasy Reverie is a solid 3D side-scrolling platforming game. The hidden collectibles and gems along with the absolutely masterful level design means that both old and new players will have a great time playing this game and maybe one day we’ll see a brand new Klonoa title because of it. There’s a reason Klonoa was a cult-classic platforming game from decades ago and that reason is its excellent game design. The boss battles and levels are so incredibly enjoyable, you’ll want to play both titles to completion and you’ll have a tonne of fun in doing so. Klonoa Phantasy Reverie is therefore highly recommended if you’re a fan of classic platformer titles that are both charming and have heart.
Reveiwed on PS5
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X and Series S, PlayStation 5
Developers: Monkey Craft, Monkeycraft
Publishers: BNE Entertainment, Namco Bandai Games America Inc.
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