If you get a kick out of retro platforming games, you really should not sleep on Goblin Sword.
I’ve recently spent a few hours with the game, and lapped up every minute of it. Playing as a sword-wielding hero, you work your way through a series of short levels, collecting coins, finding hidden treasure and slaying a range of enemies. Like any platform game worth its salt, levels are laden with secrets, filled with traps and other obstacles for you to pass. There are bosses to fight, too, and it’s all presented in a lovely pixel style that’ll take you right back to the 90s.
Even better, as you progress through the game you can unlock new weapons, armour and relics, or use your collected coins to buy them. It gives a good sense of progression, knowing that there are meaningful upgrades to acquire as you go. Armour seems to only change your appearance; but weapons increase your attack power, range and speed, and relics offer a variety of benefits, like more health or coin drops.
I had no idea how much Goblin Sword was retailing for when I played it; I skipped over that information in the press release. After playing it, though, I assumed somewhere around the £15-£20 mark. After all, it’s a fairly sizeable game, squeezing in nearly 90 levels. I’d say there’s a good 10-plus hours of playtime here; more if you want to find all the secrets in each level.
Turns out, my price estimate was off. Way off. It’s releasing today with a launch price of £2.69/$2.99. Less than three quid. That’s like… the price of a Big Mac. And Goblin Sword is way tastier than a Big Mac.
That’s a 40% launch discount, mind, but that makes Goblin Sword‘s full price only £4.49/$4.99. Which is still an absolute steal.
Seriously, if you’ve ever enjoyed a retro platform game, go buy Goblin Sword. It’s a lot of fun. Its levels are split into different worlds, all taking place in different surroundings, from forests to castles to dungeons. The pixel art is great, with some really cool enemy designs on display. And it’s a joy to control too; it’s responsive in a way that many platform games miss the mark on. It gets tough, but it always feels fair – it’s always down to your own misstep if you fail. The only gripe is that the levels don’t have checkpoints, but it’s a minor criticism; they’re fairly small, so if you die you’ll never lose more than a few minutes of progress.
So, yeah. What else can I say? Give Goblin Sword a try, and I doubt you’ll be disappointed.
