The most popular games of all time almost always have incredible teams behind them. Chrono Trigger featured the best talent Square-Enix could get their hands on, and now the turn-based role-playing game is rightfully heralded as one of the best games in its genre and of all time. However, one of these all-time classics was created entirely by one person. “Cave Story”—the title in question—features some of the best gameplay and presentation the Metroidvania genre has to offer.
“Cave Story’ encapsulates the timelessness of the presentation of early 90s video games. Every pixelated area feels distinct and memorable, which helps the player remember details and encourages them to explore their surroundings. While the environments don’t have much to offer—relative to other Metroidvanias—exploring them is always enjoyable and rewarding due to their appealing visuals and aesthetics. Additionally, the retro-style music will sear itself into your brain with how catchy and memorable it is.
The gameplay is also brilliantly fine-tuned. The movement is tight; maneuvering around tricky jumps and swarms of enemies feels as smooth as butter since the player has incredible control over movement. Combat is a constant back-and-forth between enemies and the player since weapons not only increase in quality with more enemies vanquished but also lose quality when the player takes damage. It’s a dance of dodging enemies while adapting to the environment and one’s current arsenal to make the most out of any situation.
The only major issue “Cave Story” suffers from is how its extreme difficulty clashes with its other aspects. The difficulty itself isn’t the problem, but rather the situations one will be hard-pressed to avoid without prior knowledge. The player can miss the best weapon in the game several times, there’s a weirdly high number of sections where the player cannot revisit certain areas and a one-time full-heal item can be reacquired with a lengthy hike back into one section.
The most egregious example of this trial-and-error nonsense comes from a seemingly innocuous event. Halfway through the game, there’s a situation where the player will fail to cross a chasm, fall to the bottom and obtain a jetpack that allows them to hop over the pit. This is not only how you miss out on an upgraded jetpack but also how you get the bad ending. What one should do is cross the chasm without the jetpack—which is extraordinarily difficult—which makes a new and entirely unrelated item appear at a critical point in the plot.
These issues aren’t much by themselves but inevitably snowball when the player reaches the finale. “Cave Story’s” final boss is challenging even with the best equipment in the game. It’s a fantastic mess of dodging and picking your moments to strike carefully, making it one of the best boss fights in any game. However, if one was unfortunate enough to end up with a lackluster arsenal, the worst version of the jetpack, and no full heal, they’ll find this encounter will devolve from a fantastic challenge to utter madness.
However, if one makes it through these challenges, they’ll find the experience was worth it. This review isn’t going to spoil what changes between the bad ending and the good ending, as it’s an experience well worth it to those who appreciate a tricky yet satisfying challenge. Additionally, obtaining the good ending rewards the player with additional content!
I give “Cave Story” a 9/10 and highly recommend playing it if you enjoy challenging games!
