BALAN WONDERWORLD

53%
Game Brain Score Based on 583 reviews
  • music
  • gameplay
  • story
BALAN WONDERWORLD Game Cover
Balan Wonderworld is an extravagant 3D platformer from former Sega Team producer Yuji Naka, but is it more than pizazz and parlor tricks?
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"Balan Wonderworld" is a 3D platformer game that follows the journey of two children, Leo and Emma, as they explore a mysterious land filled with 12 different worlds. Each world has its own unique theme and challenges that players must overcome by using different costumes that grant special abilities. The game features various gameplay mechanics such as puzzles, battles, and exploration, with a focus on collecting items and having fun.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Steam Deck
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Cloud
  • NVIDIA GeForce NOW
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

53%
Audience ScoreBased on 583 reviews
music85 positive mentions
grinding26 negative mentions
  • Charming art style and character designs that evoke nostalgia for classic platformers.
  • Catchy and memorable soundtrack that enhances the overall experience.
  • Engaging story themes that focus on overcoming personal struggles and emotional growth.
  • One-button control scheme limits gameplay variety and can lead to frustrating moments.
  • Costume system is bloated with redundant abilities, making some costumes feel useless.
  • Repetitive mini-games (Balan Bouts) that require perfect execution to progress, leading to tedious backtracking.
  • music171 mentions

    The music in "Balan Wonderworld" is widely praised for its charm and quality, with many reviewers highlighting its memorable and catchy tracks that enhance the overall experience. While some note that the soundtrack can become repetitive, the unique compositions and immersive sound design contribute significantly to the game's aesthetic appeal. Overall, the music stands out as one of the game's strongest elements, often overshadowing its gameplay shortcomings.

    • “The music is really good, the art style and character design are pretty neat, and every level has a unique design.”
    • “The sound and music is phenomenal, one of the best I've heard in decades and would leave you stopping playing to just sit back and listen to this magical score.”
    • “The soundtrack is stellar and I never get tired listening to it since it is very relaxing and has some bangers, so much that I went out of my way to buy the OST!”
    • “It sucks, cause it has the visual and musical appeal but lacks hard on its gameplay.”
    • “A really buggy game with a truly dumb concept riddled with bad camera controls, boring music, awful art design, disgusting colors, garbage quick time events and annoying boss fights.”
    • “It's music was painfully average, same with graphical presentation, it doesn't make sense, every button being jump was a terrible design choice, and honestly, I just didn't have fun.”
  • gameplay165 mentions

    The gameplay in Balan Wonderworld is characterized by its simplistic one-button mechanics and a costume system that offers limited abilities, leading to a lack of depth and creativity in gameplay. While the game features charming visuals and a nostalgic collectathon element, many players find the level design monotonous and the overall experience unchallenging and frustrating due to technical issues and poorly explained mechanics. Despite some enjoyment derived from exploration and character design, the gameplay ultimately fails to meet modern platforming standards, leaving it feeling shallow and unpolished.

    • “To progress, whether fighting enemies or solving puzzles, you collect 'costumes' (power-ups) that give you access to different abilities, and a large part of the gameplay is using these costumes strategically.”
    • “The gameplay is one that encourages exploration and experimentation using the many costumes.”
    • “The premise is heartwarming, the music is memorable and very pleasant to listen to, and the gameplay, although not complex, is fun and enjoyable.”
    • “Each costume has exactly one function with almost no room for creativity or experimentation, and yet there are odd mechanics and challenges that are so unintuitive that you're likely only going to discover them by chance.”
    • “The gameplay is honestly really shallow.”
    • “Monotonous level design, awful performance, and shallow gameplay combine to make for an experience that is simply not fun to play.”
  • story141 mentions

    The story of "Balan Wonderworld" is often described as charming yet confusing, with many players noting that crucial plot details are relegated to a separate book rather than being integrated into the game itself. While the overarching themes of healing and empathy resonate with some, the lack of clear storytelling and character development leaves many feeling that the narrative is underdeveloped and difficult to follow. Overall, the visuals and music are praised, but the storytelling approach has drawn significant criticism for its execution.

    • “The story is heartwarming, validates many kinds of mental and emotional traumas, teaches empathy, and leaves a lot open to player interpretation.”
    • “The story is a joy to experience and I appreciate that a good bit of it was kept to a novel to not make the main game too exposition-heavy (very much recommending the novel, btw. it's awesome.) in order to keep the game's feet more on the ground.”
    • “The worlds are so pretty and creative, the gears in my head were always turning about just what kind of costume I needed to either speed things up or get an out-of-reach statue, and the story, while simple, was still as heartfelt and meaningful as I'd come to expect from Yuji Naka.”
    • “The story is only available if you buy a book or whatever; why would you buy a book to understand this paper-thin story?”
    • “It's hard to praise talented animation when it's for sometimes confusing storytelling and done by a completely different team.”
    • “Cutscenes are scant and with very little dialogue, making the plot of the game confusing and often putting it on the backburner.”
  • graphics131 mentions

    The graphics of the game are widely praised for their vibrant and charming art style, stunning cutscenes, and appealing character designs, which evoke nostalgia for classic Sega aesthetics. However, some reviewers note that while the visuals are impressive, the overall graphical quality feels dated and the gameplay lacks depth, leading to a disconnect between the beautiful presentation and the gameplay experience. Overall, the game is seen as a visually delightful experience, particularly for those who appreciate its unique artistic direction.

    • “The graphics are very well done and totally beautiful and vibrant, cutscenes are dynamic and simply stunning.”
    • “The art style, the character design, the soundtrack, and cutscenes are all breathtaking.”
    • “The graphics are fun and creative, the character designs are spectacular, the music is phenomenal.”
    • “The graphics quality sucks for 2021.”
    • “This game is like staring into a nightmare abyss of weird choices and straight up bad design with just enough polish and shiny graphics to trick you into thinking this is a good game.”
    • “Aside from the cinematics and art style, the levels themselves are far too easy and feel far too empty.”
  • character development47 mentions

    Character development in the game is primarily highlighted through its vibrant and imaginative character designs, which many players find charming and appealing. While the art style and character aesthetics receive high praise, there is a consensus that the depth and execution of character development could be more fleshed out, leaving players wishing for a richer narrative experience. Overall, the character designs, influenced by notable designer Naoto Ohshima, stand out as a strong point, contributing to the game's whimsical and colorful atmosphere.

    • “The character design is amazing, the songs are fantastic, the sound design is cute, the visuals are charming with lots of style, and it has tons of adorable characters that start to grow on you (and the game has a surprisingly emotional ending).”
    • “I love the aesthetic, and the character designs, especially the tims -- who do a lot more than I initially expected, and actually became useful in later levels, which was a nice surprise.”
    • “The worlds are very imaginative and the character design is extremely rich, especially for those into Sonic and Nights.”
    • “Despite the stages not utilizing it well in many cases, I wish that a lot of other elements of the game were more fleshed out and vibrant.”
    • “There are positives here, however, that being character designs for starters.”
    • “The character designs are bright and colorful, but they feel underdeveloped compared to what could have been.”
  • humor34 mentions

    The humor in the game is described as a mix of unintentional hilarity and quirky charm, with amusing characters and absurd dance numbers that provide some levity. However, many reviewers find the overall experience frustrating and poorly designed, leading to a sense of humor that is often overshadowed by the game's shortcomings. While some moments are genuinely funny, the consensus leans towards the humor being more of a side effect of the game's flaws rather than a deliberate strength.

    • “This game combines its funny characters such as the fluffy Tims with the surrealness of the characters' emotional pain.”
    • “There are hilariously out-of-touch dance numbers throughout the whole game after you save a character.”
    • “Balan the Maestro is funny, and even the enemies have enough personality to make them lovable.”
  • emotional31 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its heartfelt storytelling, relatable character arcs, and a nostalgic atmosphere that resonates with players. While some elements, like the dance sequences, may evoke mixed feelings, the overall experience is described as heartwarming and impactful, effectively addressing themes of empathy and emotional resilience. Players appreciate the blend of humor and emotional depth, making for a memorable and engaging journey.

    • “The character design is amazing, the songs are fantastic, the sound design is cute, the visuals are charming with lots of style, and it has tons of adorable characters that start to grow on you (and the game has a surprisingly emotional ending).”
    • “The story is heartwarming, validates many kinds of mental and emotional traumas, teaches empathy, and leaves a lot open to player interpretation.”
    • “The stories that each of the characters went through were very realistic and relatable, and seeing them overcome their internal and emotional hardships was great to see.”
  • grinding26 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of Balan Wonderworld to be excessively tedious, with repetitive quick-time events, long animations, and a lack of options to skip or speed up sequences. The necessity to complete minigames for 100% completion, coupled with slow respawn times for power-ups and enemies, contributes to a frustrating experience that detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game. Many reviewers express a strong dislike for the costume grinding and the overall slow-paced nature of the gameplay, leading to a sense of boredom and dissatisfaction.

    • “Balan Wonderworld is a tedious 10-hour adventure that I never want to touch again.”
    • “The game and its dreadful execution, however, is where things begin to fall apart; it's pretty slow-paced, vapid, and boring. You have to do tedious minigames and bouts (which you can't even restart if you get them wrong) if you want to finish the game 100%. Even the story and characters are lacking compared to the novel, and costumes are often very samey.”
    • “Costume grinding is real, and I hate it.”
  • stability16 mentions

    Overall, the game's stability is mixed; while some players report minimal glitches and a smooth experience, others encounter significant bugs, poor hitboxes, and frustrating gameplay mechanics that disrupt the flow. Despite the varying experiences, many agree that the game is not overly buggy, though its design choices contribute to a feeling of instability in gameplay.

    • “During my time playing the game, there were no glitches or bugs, so it's got that at least.”
    • “A really buggy game with a truly dumb concept riddled with bad camera controls, boring music, awful art design, disgusting colors, garbage quick time events, and annoying boss fights.”
    • “The fact that there is only one button to do everything, so many costumes, quite annoying minigames with no real way to restart if you mess up, bugs and glitches is somewhat a huge turnoff for many.”
    • “The gameplay is so stilted; whenever you change 'powers', everything stops in place, freezes, and then you change costumes.”
  • atmosphere10 mentions

    The atmosphere of Balan Wonderworld is often compared to that of Nights into Dreams, evoking a sense of charm and whimsy through its art direction and music. While the game showcases a unique and engaging environment, some players feel it falls short due to its simplistic design and unfinished elements. Overall, it is described as a pleasant and chill experience, enhanced by its character-driven level design.

    • “Balan Wonderworld is a finished and complete experience with a lot of charm and a great amount of care and talent put into art direction, music, and atmosphere.”
    • “They're pretty cool and manage to help the atmospheric level design reflect the game's characters even better.”
    • “Just a nice atmospheric chill game.”
    • “Balan Wonderworld is a finished and complete experience with a lot of charm and a great amount of care and talent put into art direction, music, and atmosphere. It just may not be the experience for you, especially with some of the decisions made to make it as simplistic as it is.”
    • “Balan Wonderworld is so extremely close to the premise and atmosphere of Nights into Dreams (1996) that I have a hard time not considering it a spiritual sequel or same-universe thing.”
  • replayability9 mentions

    The game offers strong replayability through its collect-a-thon elements, secret hard mode, and unlockable costumes that enhance gameplay and encourage backtracking. Players can also engage in achievement hunting with unique bosses and challenges that appear in harder difficulties, adding to the overall replay value.

    • “And also if you don't take any hits, there's a super secret hard mode for even more replayability and achievement hunting, as some secret bosses/enemies only appear in hard mode.”
    • “Some costumes you can get later on make the replayability of this game a lot better than I expected, or are a little game-breaking, which is also fun when you backtrack to previous levels.”
    • “[Simple platforming gameplay with a smart puzzle-like costume system, wonderful story, world, and music, tons of variety and replay value.]”
    • “Some costumes you can get later on make the replayability of this game a lot better than I expected, or are a little game-breaking which is also fun when you backtrack to previous levels.”
    • “And although I haven't replayed it yet, I can see the replayability being strong seeing that it's sort of a collect-a-thon.”
    • “Pros: art, controls, graphics, story, costumes, level design, music, cinematics, visual effects, prop quality, voice acting, sound design, bosses, character designs, world themes, collectibles, musical numbers (lol), replayability”
  • optimization6 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users reporting smooth performance on powerful hardware, while others experience significant issues such as lag, clunky controls, and camera stuttering. Overall, the game appears to suffer from poor performance and shallow gameplay, detracting from the overall experience.

    • “I also am using a somewhat powerful gaming laptop, so I have not experienced any performance issues whatsoever.”
    • “In short: bad performance, clunky controls and gameplay, little platforming, easy puzzles.”
    • “Everything is not fluent, laggy, blurry, and weird motions everywhere, and camera stuttering.”
    • “Monotonous level design, awful performance, and shallow gameplay combine to make for an experience that is simply not fun to play.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

47% average critic score

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Play time

2hMedian play time
3hAverage play time
11hMain story
34hCompletionist
1-5hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 6 analyzed playthroughs

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