Donut Dodo review (Switch)

Price: £4.49 eShop (copy provided for review) 

Developer: PixelGames

Publisher: Flynn's Arcade

Players: 1

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Polemic bit first

I think it is fair to say a lot of the fun has gone out of gaming over the decades. As someone lucky enough to witness the tiny wonders of Gauntlet and SuperSprint all the way to today, "fun" has been replaced by "immersion," "scope" and "drama" across almost all genres. 

The first Madden on Mega Drive was great "fun", now I barely have the energy to get through the menus to a game. The early 90s were packed with bright and video arcade ports from Bubble Bobble and BombJack to Mikie, from Ghosts n Goblins to Combat School and Out Run, even these tough-as-nails games were highly-focused on welcoming and tempting players, before kicking their arses. 

Each game had its sequences, its tricks, packed with cheery visuals and bleepy tunes, that still rattle around my noggin, to drag players to the next level. But not today, platformers have gone from Sonic to cookie-cutter hell-jumps, characters that lack character, and brand values that trump any effort at gameplay innovation. 

So, it is rare to find a game that is eager to celebrate joy (Tearaway and Cursed Castilla are a few examples I can think of), before taunting us with "Game Over" and making us want to go all the way back to the start. 

Actual review

Which brings us to Donut Dodo, blending all of the nostalgia listed above into a rich milkshake of bubbly arcade froth. PixelGames has been on my radar for a while with a tribute to H.E.R.O. in the form of Bobby Bombastic among other titles in the works. But Donut Dodo is a big step forward from them in terms of panache and vibrance. 

Donut Dodo sees hapless chef Billy Burns trying to recapture his glazed baked goods from the greedy oversize dodo. Collect all the little donuts (with more points-by-multiplier for getting them in a BombJack style light-up sequence) and the mega donut is yours, if you can get it before the oversize budgie and its tricky minions get in the way. 

Each level adds a new layer of difficulty, with fresh obstacles and challenges, ladders, ropes, leaps, screen exits and more. Pause for a minute and you'll notice Donut is strikingly beautiful with bags of charm and clever design splashed across each screen. 

Donut Dodo uses a traditional 4x3 ratio with some gorgeous art and useful info around the edge to lure players in. But eyes need to be on the three or more threats per platform that might drop down, screen-in, jump at Billy, or trap him against a wall. 

Yes, its death, death, death, but learning the patterns in such a vivid world is so much fun, and beating the high score or perfecting each level is such a challenge, one that starts all over again with the next level. And there's a medium-hard mode for those that complete the normal path through the game. 

It would be good if there was a per-level high score (and perhaps secret levels for perfect rounds). And perhaps a few more treats, but perhaps that's me being donut greedy! 

With nods to retro games, is that Jet Set Willy's toilet chasing Billy around? Those fruit bonuses are suspiciously Pac-Manesque, and the need to watch above below and both sides constantly creates a level of situational awareness  that is truly reminiscent of those fixated arcade moments where the bedlam melted away and there was nothing but player and screen.

Score 5/5