PSX 2016 - Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap First Impressions

Published: December 9, 2016 11:00 AM /

Previewed By:


WonderBoyTheDragonsTrap-06

In an age of stripped down pixel throw backs like Hotline Miami and Retro City Rampage, or hyper realistic 3D renders like The Order: 1886 and Uncharted 4, Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap might be one of the most eye pleasing games to come out in a very long time.

WonderBoyTheDragonsTrap 08
That cloud will ruin your day

Visually, this game is a work of art. From the hand drawn characters to its silky smooth animation, Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap might be the most gorgeous remake ever.  In fact, the screens I've attached to this article don't do it justice, and I would go as far as to say that this game in motion looks better than anything else out right now. For many of you (myself included) Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap isn't new but actually a painstakingly faithful but modern remake of the original on the SEGA Master System. The animation in this game is unlike anything I've ever seen. It's so vivid and crisp, yet still has the look and feel of a videogame it's hard to compare it to anything else on the market right now.

WonderBoyTheDragonsTrap 09
That's one tough manbearpig.

Its animation, history, and visual fidelity aren't the only thing going for it. Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap plays incredibly well. Within the first few moments of the demo, it was obvious that developer Lizardcube had built a game that plays as good as it looks.  The movement felt tight like a Mario title, while the environments were full of secrets and optional paths encouraging players to come back and explore previous areas with one of the game's sixforms. The world in Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap is pretty open. In the demo I was searching for a key and visited a few different environments before backtracking to open up a door I had run across in the opening stage of the demo. I usually hate doing this in games, but here it felt alright seeing familiar spots and plowing through enemies with my upgraded armor and weaponry.

In short, Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap is much more than another Metroidvania title, it's much more than a remake of a cult classic that's as old as the guy writing this, and it's definitely much more than a contender to the best looking 2D game in recent memory. Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap is the complete package and I cant wait to dive in for more.

Previews you can trust: To ensure you're getting a fair, accurate, and informed review, our experienced team spends a significant amount of time on everything we preview. Read more about how we review games and products.

 

Have a tip, or want to point out something we missed? Leave a Comment or e-mail us at tips@techraptor.net


Nick Maillet TechRaptor
| Former Lead Video Editor

When im not playing games Im working on TV shows as a colorist. You can find me on twitter posting pictures of my rabbit and other useless junk.