A Hole New World
- October 30, 2014
- MadGearGames
Get on Steam"A Hole New World" is a 2D retro-style game with pixelated graphics. The player takes on the role of a hero fighting to save the world from monsters invading from another dimension. With a variety of weapons and abilities, players must traverse through different levels and boss battles to seal the interdimensional hole and restore peace. The game features both single-player and local co-op modes.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
Xbox One
Linux
PlayStation
Playstation Vita
Xbox
Reviews
- The game features a nostalgic retro aesthetic reminiscent of classic NES titles, with solid pixel art and enjoyable music.
- The duality mechanic of normal and inverted gravity levels adds an interesting twist to gameplay, providing unique challenges.
- Boss fights are challenging yet fair, requiring players to develop strategies to overcome them, which can be rewarding.
- Level design is often convoluted and filled with frustrating enemy placements, leading to a trial-and-error experience that can feel unfair.
- The game suffers from clunky controls and inconsistent hitboxes, making combat and platforming frustrating at times.
- Many achievements are overly difficult or absurd, such as requiring players to defeat every enemy in the game, which can lead to a tedious experience.
- gameplay18 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally well-received for its unique mechanics, particularly the gravity inversion feature, which adds an interesting twist reminiscent of classic titles. However, it suffers from issues such as artificial difficulty, inconsistent hitboxes, and frustrating mechanics that detract from the overall experience. While the level design and aesthetics are praised, some players find the gameplay execution flawed, leading to a mix of enjoyment and frustration.
“The cool mechanic here that's explained from the first level is the ability to walk both normal and 'inverted' gravity levels.”
“Reminds me of classicvania but with a very interesting gameplay twist.”
“[Solid retro-style 2D gameplay that offers plenty of unique and challenging action, cool visuals, and great music, rewarding replay value for hardcore gamers.]”
“Coupled with the 'new game plus' mechanic, it is obvious in hindsight that they expect you to have all the unlocks already obtained to even navigate all of the areas in what is a very linear and ruthless game.”
“Gameplay execution, enemy, fight, and level design had major flaws that made it boring, unfair, and frustrating in ways that it shouldn't, such as the necessity for frame-perfect execution of the slide kick if you want to use it as intended (and as is necessary for blocking the charge of the final boss), or random instances where your invulnerability suddenly doesn't matter.”
“Bullshit attacks, inconsistent hitboxes, not fun to play against, weren't mechanically very deep, and most of all they weren't memorable.”
- music12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its nostalgic 8-bit style and catchy tunes, while others find it generic and uninspired. Overall, it is described as good but not particularly memorable, with a few standout tracks that evoke a sense of nostalgia for old-school gaming. The combination of solid sound design and engaging music contributes positively to the overall experience, especially for fans of retro-style platformers.
“The music here is beautiful and reminiscent of the 8-bit era!”
“I love just about everything about it; my favorite part is the music and the upside-down world, which sometimes makes it feel like two games in one!”
“The awesome art style and the catchy soundtrack combined with the upside-down world make this game one of the best platformers I have played in years.”
“Finally, I found most of the music tracks to be uninspired.”
“The music sounds generic and has no punch to it.”
“Although, the soundtracks remind me of many pop songs.”
- graphics11 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players finding them good but not particularly memorable, while others appreciate the retro aesthetic and unique art style. Overall, the visuals are described as solid and fitting for the gameplay, contributing positively to the overall experience.
“The awesome art style and the catchy soundtrack combined with the upside-down world make this game one of the best platformers I have played in years.”
“I generally liked the aesthetic, the upside-down-world aspect (which kind of reminded me of Battle of Olympus) and the gameplay that looked like an interesting take on Mega Man.”
“The game is very nice, I like this kind of graphics; I would like to have a multiplayer feature in the next version.”
“Whoever did the graphics for this game should have picked different partners (or focused solely on that; I didn't look up how many people worked on this).”
“[b]Graphics:[/b] ☐ potato - [b]☑[/b] bad - ☐ ok - ☐ good - ☐ beautiful”
“Visuals: 3/5”
- story7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The story is perceived as lacking depth and development, with elements that feel superficial and primarily designed for visual appeal rather than narrative substance. While there are interesting components, such as an engaging opening sequence and a fitting alternate world, the overall execution leaves much to be desired, resulting in a low rating of 2/5.
“Playing a whole new world is like using a time machine; it has all the elements of old school games: gameplay, story, graphics, music...”
“They've even got an opening sequence telling a story, speed-run options, and from what I've heard, a new-game+ option, not to mention special attacks and a reverse world you reach by falling into some holes in the ground.”
“The presence of this other world actually fits into the storyline.”
“The story quality is bad, rated 2/5.”
“Playing a whole new world feels like using a time machine; it has all the elements of old school games, but the story is lacking.”
“The presence of this other world does not enhance the storyline.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 150 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
The game features solid retro-style 2D gameplay with unique challenges, appealing visuals, and great music, which provides rewarding replay value primarily for hardcore gamers. However, it received a low replayability score of 2/5, suggesting that casual players may find limited incentive to revisit the game.
“Solid retro-style 2D gameplay that offers plenty of unique and challenging action, cool visuals, and great music, providing rewarding replay value for hardcore gamers.”
“The game features multiple paths and endings, encouraging players to explore different strategies and playstyles, which significantly enhances its replayability.”
“With a variety of unlockable content and achievements, each playthrough feels fresh and exciting, making you want to dive back in for more.”
“The game lacks meaningful choices, making replaying it feel pointless.”
“Once you've completed the main story, there's little incentive to go back and play again.”
“The limited variety in gameplay mechanics means that replaying the game feels more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
- stability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -300 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The stability of the game is generally viewed as acceptable, with users reporting some non-game breaking bugs, but overall, it is not considered a buggy mess or nearly perfect.
“Stability: some non-game breaking bugs.”
“The game is a buggy mess with frequent crashes.”
“There are some non-game breaking bugs that affect the overall experience.”
“The stability issues really detract from what could have been an almost perfect game.”
