This is a 2-D platformer featuring Mexican art, music, and themes. Play as the title character as he runs, jumps, slides, slashes cactus monsters, and farts his way to the end of each level to save the day!  Viva Sancho Villa is downloadable on iOS devices and Google Play, but reviewed on iPad here.

Like a continuous runner, you are constantly going forward and can’t stop. But the stages are not random, and you select them via a map kind of like a Mario game or other typical console platformer.  In each stage you must make it to the end, but take a hit and you must start at the beginning.  Swipe up on the left side of the screen to jump, and do it again to double jump with a fart boost.  Once you get a sword after the first level, you’ll be able to swipe on the right side of the screen to slash cactus and piñata monsters and perform combos.  Later on you’ll get other weapons like a pistol.  You can also defeat enemies by stomping on them, or by swiping downward on a hill to slide down and hit anything that is in your way!

Scattered about the stages are coins that you can use at the start of each level to buy power-ups, or to revive your character if you get hit in the middle of the stage. You can also find peppers that can grant you temporary invincibility, or beans that’ll let you fly for a short while by farting.  I found the game challenging, but not because the game was tough.  Sometimes I wouldn’t have enough time to react because the camera was zoomed in too close, or the scrolling was so choppy that I couldn’t control the character very well.  With some polish, this could’ve been a somewhat decent console platformer, but I’ve played better 2-D adventures with Mexican themes (like Guacamelee).

Kid Factor:

While you do slice and shoot silly cactus monsters with your sword, they just tear in half when defeated, so the violence is very cartoony. There is a bit of crude humor with all the farting going on as you double jump and fly with the power of beans.  Younger gamers may find the game too challenging and frustrating.  Reading skill is needed for the text, and parental supervision is recommended for the in-game purchases.

Tags: Game Reviews