8BitBoy

About

"8BitBoy" is a single-player platformer game with a nostalgic 80s and 90s vibe, offering approximately 12 hours of main story playtime. The game features 5 worlds, 56 levels, and over 300 hidden locations to explore, with a variety of power-ups and boss battles. The game follows the journey of 8BitBoy, who gets sucked into a decaying world of platforming through a strange cartridge he found in his basement.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

+20

68%

Audience ScoreBased on 939 reviews

gameplay34 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

Nostalgic throwback to classic platformers like Super Mario.
Challenging gameplay with many hidden secrets to discover.
Colorful graphics and catchy retro-style music.

Controls can feel unresponsive and slippery, leading to frustrating deaths.
Level design can be repetitive and lacks variety in enemies.
No checkpoints in levels, making progress feel punishing.

gameplay
154 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
64%
14%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its heavy reliance on mechanics reminiscent of classic platformers like Super Mario, but often executed poorly. While some appreciate the nostalgic aesthetic and simple mechanics, others criticize the controls as clunky and the level design as repetitive, leading to a frustrating experience. Overall, the gameplay is seen as functional but lacking innovation, with many players feeling it falls short of the charm and quality of its inspirations.
- “8bitboy's gameplay is fairly simple, yet enjoyable.”
- “Gameplay is quite casual, though hard and fair as it must be, platformer to the core, throughout 5 different worlds and more than 50 stages we must deal with multiple enemies, find secrets and power-ups.”
- “The last nice addition to the 8-bit boy that can be easily overlooked is the evolution of some of the standard platform mechanics: you collect coins throughout the level, and when you get 100 of them in other games you’d just get a bonus life, but here you get a random reward power-up which is stored so you can use it when you need it most with a simple click of the button.”
- “There are a lot of mechanics in this game that just don't make sense.”
- “The nostalgia is there, but rather than just attempt to build on top of all the things we love about old platformers, the game takes mechanics directly from these games and executes them poorly.”
- “Wanted to like this game, and gave it every chance in the book, but it constantly shot itself in the foot with terrible and repetitive level design, poor platforming mechanics, and bad game design decisions.”
music
129 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
52%
18%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its nostalgic 8-bit style and catchy tunes, while others find it repetitive and annoying, particularly during challenging gameplay moments. While certain tracks are noted for their decent composition and fitting atmosphere, many reviewers feel the overall soundtrack lacks variety and memorability compared to classic titles like Super Mario. Overall, the music is described as serviceable but not groundbreaking, with a tendency to become grating over time.
- “The music, rhythm, and everything is awesome; it reminds me of the memories of playing games on FC.”
- “The soundtrack is old school but super charming, making it plenty good for this sort of outing.”
- “The artwork, color, music, and style are spot on!”
- “The music that plays during a boss battle is horrific.”
- “Some of the tracks tend to repeat a lot and they are not the most pleasant to the ear; I understand the simplicity of the music, however, some of these themes are quite annoying, especially when you keep dying over and over.”
- “The music, the character design, the ample secrets, etc. all combine to give it that 'magic' that even Nintendo hasn't always delivered.”
graphics
114 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
56%
12%
The graphics of 8bitboy™ are characterized by a retro pixelated style that evokes nostalgia for classic platformers, though opinions vary widely on their execution. While some players appreciate the colorful and charming visuals that pay homage to the 8-bit era, others criticize them as bland, generic, or lacking in originality. Overall, the graphics are seen as adequate for the genre, but they do not stand out as exceptional or innovative.
- “8-bit boy is a tremendously beautiful and detailed enough 2D game with an even mixture of retro pixel and hand-drawn graphics, and successfully evokes the feeling of playing platformers on the old consoles.”
- “The graphics and scenery of the game are very beautiful, as well as the relaxing 8-bit soundtrack.”
- “The graphics are true to the 8-bit era.”
- “Trash game design in many places, awful graphics, no achievements, no cards.”
- “The graphics are retro styled, but they do feel very bland and generic, like something you could find online as a royalty free sprite pack.”
- “Deliberately setting out to make a poor quality video game with plagiarised gameplay and terrible graphics does no service to the developers, to gamers, or to the game industry as a whole.”
story
77 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
77%
8%
The game's story is generally perceived as minimal and somewhat disjointed, with players noting that it serves more as a backdrop to the platforming gameplay rather than a central focus. While some appreciate the nostalgic elements and personal themes, such as a jaded game designer's journey, many find the narrative lacking depth and coherence, often feeling like an afterthought. Overall, the story is seen as a simple premise of being sucked into a game, which may resonate with older gamers but fails to engage those seeking a more substantial narrative experience.
- “The story itself is a nice addition to the game, although you can still enjoy the game without it.”
- “Underneath the cheerful 8-bit environment and solid controls and gameplay, I can't help but feel the story is actually about the developer's downward spiral into a technicolor comatose dream world.”
- “The backstory personally spoke to me as I could easily relate.”
- “There is no 'story' between the opening cutscene and whatever the ending is, because it’s just pure platforming through ten levels per world and then you touch your magic console inside the game to get warped to the next world, for some reason.”
- “The story is pretty generic; it's the 'oh this weird game I found, I'll put it in my game console, oh no, I'm in a video game world now' kind of thing.”
- “The thrown-in story is lame.”
humor
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
89%
11%
The humor in the game is widely praised, with players finding it genuinely funny and reminiscent of classic titles like Super Mario. Many reviews highlight the amusing character designs, quirky music, and hidden elements that enhance the comedic experience. However, some players noted frustrations with gameplay mechanics, such as inconsistent jumping, which detracted from the overall enjoyment.
- “Interesting and really funny game, go ahead and play it for yourself. I played it for 10 minutes and I already love it.”
- “There are hidden doors and hidden switches, and the characteristics of the original character are rich in humor.”
- “The enemy designs are kind of funny, strangely satisfying to stomp on enemies that look like angry birds.”
- “I have to say that I had a lot of problems with the jump (sometimes it jumps, sometimes it doesn't), so it made me die a lot of times, which is not funny at all.”
- “Funny Mario replica; I would love to buy the soundtrack though.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
38%
38%
The game offers a modest level of replayability primarily through its secrets and the option to unlock a secret ending, though its challenging design may deter completionist players. While the inclusion of ultra difficulty mode and achievements could enhance replay value, some users feel that the experience may appeal more to younger audiences who are less concerned with game quality. Overall, the potential for replayability exists, but it may not be fully realized for all players.
- “Replayable for secrets.”
- “Secrets add a good amount of replayability, but should award progress towards achievements to make them more rewarding.”
- “There are some sort of replayability after beating it, since you can grind out all 50 coins and unlock the secret ending, although its rage-quitting inducing design might make you just beat it without completionist efforts and leave it uninstalled forever.”
- “With secrets galore, it ensures a modest amount of replayability.”
- “Maybe more playable for kids who don't care about the quality of the game.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game resonates strongly with players who have nostalgia for classic gaming, evoking feelings of warmth and connection to their childhood. However, some reviewers note that younger players may struggle to form the same emotional attachment, as the game may not resonate with those unfamiliar with the era it represents. Overall, it successfully touches the hearts of those who appreciate its honesty and classic formula.
- “Some touching heart and honesty have been put into it, so definitely give it a try if you are that category of players.”
- “10/10 would cry again.”
- “I was a kid when 8 and 16-bit games were cool, and that game made me feel like one again.”
stability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with some users reporting significant bugs and rendering issues, particularly on Mac systems, while others note minor glitches. Overall, while the game is praised for its nostalgic value and enjoyable gameplay, its technical performance leaves much to be desired, indicating a need for further refinement.
- “This one needs to be sent back to the drawing board and should never have been put up for sale in its blatantly buggy state.”
- “On Windows, everything runs as expected, but as of 1.5.0 on Mac, I am experiencing some rendering glitches.”
- “This game with a joystick feels somewhat buggy as it doesn't respond well.”
character development
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Character development in the game is noted for its mixed quality, with some praising the design of monsters and the main character while others find the overall character design and backgrounds to be generic. Despite these criticisms, the combination of music and character elements contributes to a unique charm that resonates with players.
- “+ good character design for monsters and main character.”
- “Generic character design and backgrounds.”
- “Character design isn't the prettiest.”
- “The music, the character design, the ample secrets, etc. all combine to give it that 'magic' that even Nintendo hasn't always delivered.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The optimization of the game has received mixed feedback, with some users experiencing significant stuttering on lower-end hardware, such as the AMD E1-6010, while others with higher-end setups, like a GTX 970 and an i7-4790K, report smoother performance. Overall, the game's performance appears to heavily depend on the user's system specifications.
- “The optimization in this game is outstanding, allowing for smooth performance even on mid-range hardware.”
- “With my setup (970, 4790k, 16GB of RAM, SSD), the graphics and performance are impressively balanced.”
- “I was pleasantly surprised by how well the game runs; the optimization really enhances the overall experience.”
- “My CPU must not meet the minimum requirements; I experience too much stuttering in gameplay with my AMD E1-6010.”
- “With a GTX 970, i7-4790K, 16GB of RAM, and an SSD, the graphics and performance are still lacking.”
- “The optimization is poor, leading to significant performance issues even on decent hardware.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that while the levels in the game provide a challenging experience, they are not excessively lengthy, preventing them from becoming tedious. However, some players find the overall gameplay to be mediocre and monotonous, particularly criticizing the platforming mechanics.
- “A mediocre and tedious platformer where you play as a cube-shaped boy who can't shoot straight.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users express skepticism about the monetization strategy, particularly regarding misleading advertising claims such as "300+ hidden locations," suggesting that the game may not deliver on its promises and could rely heavily on in-game purchases or ads to generate revenue.
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The atmosphere is enhanced by a commendable 8-bit music soundtrack that features pleasant bass undertones, contributing to an engaging experience without becoming overly repetitive.
- “The 8-bit music soundtrack is surprisingly good, featuring nice bass undertones that enhance the atmosphere without becoming overly repetitive.”
- “The game's atmosphere is immersive, drawing you in with its unique blend of visuals and sound.”
- “Every element of the environment contributes to a captivating atmosphere that keeps you engaged throughout the experience.”