While all this talk about level design and movement abilities certainly sounds every other platformer in existence, what makes Freedom Planet stand out is how well all of these elements work together. Difficulty scaling is also handled extremely well, with the challenge slowly ramping up from a smooth romp in the first level to a frantic nail-biter near the end. Each area is a beautiful, expansive piece of scenery filled with all manner of obstacles tailored exquisitely to her abilities. There are also a staggering number of enemies unique to each level, with appropriately grandiose bosses. Level design is by far the most Sonic-esque thing about Freedom Planet, which is what allows Lilac’s movement options to shine. Having the option to replay the game and get a new experience is nice, but frankly they could both be removed completely and the game wouldn’t suffer for it, whatsoever. While Carol (short-range combat focused) and Milla (defensive/ranged attack based) have their own enjoyable quirks, neither felt as well-executed as Lilac. Thus, Freedom Planet hits the sweet spot of being both approachable for casual players and rewarding for those who put the time in to learn all the tricks. A well timed spin dash can send Lilac roaring through a level at breakneck speed, or it can erase bosses in a matter of seconds. While controlling her is a breeze initially, the timing and positioning required to execute the perfect dash takes time to learn. However, Lilac’s signature move is a multi-directional spin dash attack used for both mobility and combat, similar to Sparkster’s rocket dash in Rocket Knight Adventures. This one move is the heart of what makes Lilac and Freedom Planet work so well. Of the three options, she offers the closest thing to a classic platformer playstyle with a basic double jump and melee attacks. I spent most of my time playing as Lilac, the ostensible main character. Freedom Planet manages the impressive feat of meshing the best parts of all three while still presenting an experience all its own. While Sonic the Hedgehog is the most well known staple, the likes of Rocket Knight Adventures (for its mobility options) and Gunstar Heroes (for enemy and boss design) were noteworthy as well. The marketing slogan “Genesis does what Nintendon’t” was actually pretty apt when it came to platformers. In contrast to Nintendo platformers of the same time period, the Genesis flavor placed more emphasis on not just speed, but freedom of movement, faster-paced action, and more complex enemies. Strange cutscenes aside, Freedom Planet demonstrates a robust understanding of what made its source material tick. Fortunately there’s an option to skip every cutscene, and even an entire game mode that removes most of them altogether. This type of storytelling, while not terrible on its own, is pretty bizarre when sandwiched between fast-paced platforming and action-heavy gameplay. While the characters are well-drawn, well-voiced and likable, the story is primarily told through very long cutscenes between stages. Taking on the role of one of three anthropomorphic animals, Lilac, Carol, and Milla, the player must defeat an alien warlord intent on stealing their planet’s energy source. As a result, Freedom Planet is one of the best platformers I’ve ever laid hands on. While it may not appear all that special on the surface, after only a few minutes of playtime I could see that developer GalaxyTrail had both great affection for and knowledge of their subject material. It’s a delicate balancing act to emulate something ancient while functioning as something more advanced, and very few titles can pull it off successfully, a la Shovel Knight.įreedom Planet, a 2D platformer in the mold of early 1990s Sega Genesis titles, is another rare one that gets this balance right. Besides capturing the look and tone from a specific bygone era, they also have to mimic retro mechanics as well, and those mechanics are often out-of-date and difficult to return to in today’s modern age. Retro-style games have a harder task in front of them than one might think. LOW Cutscenes of this length feel out of place in a game like this. HIGH Landing a perfect spin dash on a boss. No, I don’t Know Why It’s Called Freedom Planet