Well this game certainly took me by surprise, as it’s one of the best games I’ve played this year so far!  Bakeru is set in an alternate version of Japan, where fairy tale heroes are real.  You play as Bakeru, a shape-shifting tanuki who attacks enemies with taiko drumsticks in his human form.  You’ll travel around this cartoony version of Japan in a 3D platformer style adventure. The Japanese themes remind me a lot of games like Okami and the Goemon games (Mystical Ninja in the US).  In fact, Good Feel made Bakeru, and one of the guys who founded that company used to work for Konami and made a lot of the Goemon games.  So many people say that Bakeru is like a spiritual successor to those.  Good Feel also made many games for Nintendo, some of which include Wario Land: Shake it, Kirby’s Epic Yarn, and Yoshi’s Woolly World.  And Bakeru is just as good as anything Nintendo has produced this year so far, and it’s available on Switch and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.

As Bakeru, you can run and jump and do a lot of the moves that Mario in 3D can do, even a side flip.  Pressing the L and R buttons will make Bakeru attack with the taiko drumsticks in his left and right hands.  You can perform all sorts of combos and charged moves this way, and it’s a lot of fun.  As you play, you’ll be able to transform into other Japanese fairy tale heroes.  One lets you shrink down to fit into small spaces, while the others change up your attacks like a stronger Sumo style fighter, or long distance blows with fishing rods!  While in these transformations, a meter will go down and if it is empty, you’ll change back into your original form.  But you can refill the meter by collecting special glowing objects from defeated enemies.  Bakeru can also use a taiko drum as a shield, and if you time it right, you can even deflect shots back at foes.  Coins can also be collected to buy items and upgrades from a shopkeeper tanuki you’ll meet in the stages.

Most of the stages are 3D platforming affairs with more of a focus on combat.  Your goal in each area is to find three special lanterns and destroy them, which will unlock a giant Taiko drum at the end of the stage for you to pound on to finish it.  There are lots of hidden collectables for you to find, too.  In each stage are three prize balls you can open to get a souvenir you can view later in your giant flying tea kettle.  Touring Japan and getting those souvenir items makes this game feel like you’re on a vacation.  Granted you’re touring a very cartoony, unrealistic version of Japan, but it’s still very fun.  There is also this little guy named Scoop, who looks like one of those cartoony poop icons, who you can find in five different places throughout the levels, and he’ll give you a useless fact (mostly about Japan) if you talk to him.  Later on in the game you can try and find some really well hidden tanukis, too!  Some stages mix things up with racing and shooting sections, as well as giant robot boss battles where your flying tea kettle transforms into a huge battle mech!

Bakeru does have a few minor problems.  There are around 60 or so stages, which is a lot for a 3D platformer.  But they went for quantity over quality here as many of the stages repeat themes and assets.  But there are still lots of standout fun ones like on the deck of a cruise ship, on the rooftops of a Japanese pagoda castle, or a town that’s actually a giant pachinko machine!  And in order to get all the collectables, you might have to do a bit of backtracking which can be a pain for some people.  And since the game is more focused on combat, sometimes the platform jumping sections aren’t quite as good.  But these problems didn’t deter the fun I had with this game.  If you enjoy colorful 3D platformers from the GameCube era, you definitely want to try this one out.

Kid Factor:

Nothing too violent or objectionable here.  You do bonk silly enemies with drumsticks and fishing poles but they just disappear in a sparkly explosion when defeated.  There is a bit of crude humor with the poop jokes, but the game could be considered slightly educational since you go around Japan (geography) learning trivia and facts and such.  Reading skill is needed, though.  Bakeru is rated E for Everyone.

Tags: Game Reviews