Double Cross
- June 19, 2019
- Graffiti_Games
Stop an interdenominational criminal from carrying out his mysterious plan as you collect clues to discover his true identity!
In Double Cross, players assume the role of Zahra, an agent of R.I.F.T., to maintain peace between dimensions. After an attack on R.I.F.T. headquarters, players must investigate and fight across various dimensions using the Proton Slinger mechanic and upgrade their gear using Upgradium. The game features an adventure-style level progression, allowing players to choose their path.
Reviews
- The level design is exceptional, providing a satisfying and engaging platforming experience.
- The game features interesting character designs and a fun story that keeps players intrigued.
- The grappling mechanics add a unique and enjoyable element to both platforming and combat.
- The combat feels simplistic and unresponsive, leading to a lack of depth in gameplay.
- Platforming controls can be floaty and imprecise, making some sections frustrating to navigate.
- The story and character development are underwhelming, with predictable plot twists and generic dialogue.
- story78 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with some praising its light-hearted and engaging narrative, memorable characters, and intriguing twists, while others criticize it for being generic, underdeveloped, and lacking depth. Many players enjoyed the unique character designs and the blend of humor and mystery, but felt that the plot often fell into familiar tropes and failed to create a strong emotional investment. Overall, while the story has its enjoyable moments, it is often overshadowed by its shortcomings in character development and originality.
“Zahra is an incredibly enjoyable heroine to follow throughout the story, and her moveset remains simple while providing options for expansion and a high skill ceiling.”
“But the story was well crafted and kept me intrigued, and the side plots among the characters were something I’d love to see even more of if there’s a future installment one day.”
“The story is quaint, mostly consisting of interacting with a cast of very unique-looking and stylized characters; it rarely overstays its welcome, serving largely as a break between levels, while being interesting enough not to make you want to skip it entirely.”
“The story leaves so much to be desired; the characters have so much potential, but no one gets fleshed out much.”
“Story is incredibly generic; the dialogue is painfully generic, and characters will be like 'my family was killed, that's why I'm evil,' with a 'sad' music track playing as if the player is supposed to care.”
“What really makes it especially dull is that the story commands zero interest.”
- gameplay66 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally enjoyable, featuring smooth platforming mechanics and a variety of unique level designs that keep the experience fresh. While the grappling and slinging mechanics add fun and momentum, the combat is simplistic and can feel repetitive, with some players noting issues with keyboard support and the integration of dialogue during gameplay. Overall, the game strikes a balance between classic platforming and modern mechanics, but some players feel it lacks depth and can overwhelm with too many mechanics introduced at once.
“It's a surprisingly smooth platformer with good level design and gameplay mechanics.”
“The levels are very fun to go through, each of them bringing a new gameplay element into the mix.”
“This is a platformer that hits that good balance between classic design and difficulty, and modern mechanics and polish.”
“The combat isn't anything too deep, mainly having you fight a rotation of 10 or so simple enemies, with the enjoyment of the fighting coming less from its mechanics and more from the satisfaction of wrecking enemies.”
“It doesn't break up or spice up gameplay enough through each world.”
“Though Double Cross has an interesting premise and some exceptionally well-designed levels, it’s weighed down by a series of ho-hum gameplay elements that aren’t adequately fleshed out and give the overall experience something of an identity crisis.”
- music30 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising it as solid and enjoyable, while others find it uninspired and forgettable. Many players feel that while the soundtrack is decent, it lacks the energy and impact needed to enhance key moments in the game. Overall, the music is seen as a secondary aspect that could have been improved to elevate the overall experience.
“It has a short but killer soundtrack, a fun story, and a cast of characters that are as memorable as they are unique (looking at you, pineapple!).”
“The music is well done.”
“Nice art style, music, and story.”
“Story is incredibly generic, dialog is painfully generic, characters will be like 'my family was killed that's why I'm evil.' with a 'sad' music track playing like the player is supposed to care.”
“On the graphics and sound side, the character designs are decent, and some of the special effects are nice, but everything else is just boring: level graphics and backgrounds are distractingly under-detailed, and the music is uninspired and forgettable.”
“The music is solid.”
- graphics29 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The game's graphics feature a simplistic yet colorful art style, with appealing character designs and charming aesthetics that enhance the overall experience. However, many reviewers noted that the level graphics and backgrounds lack detail and depth, making them feel repetitive and underwhelming. While the visuals are enjoyable, they could benefit from more variety and complexity to elevate the game's artistic presentation.
“Despite the simplistic art style, the game features colorful character designs and diverse environments.”
“Even though I'm not a fan of platformer games, this game was really fun to play; it's a very enjoyable game with beautiful 2D graphics.”
“Combat is cool, the story is awesome and exciting, and I like the character designs. This game has beautiful environmental graphics, which is something I like about it. I will recommend this game to everyone.”
“On the graphics and sound side, the character designs are decent, and some of the special effects are nice, but everything else is just boring: level graphics and backgrounds are distractingly under-detailed, and the music is uninspired and forgettable.”
“The environments are very flat, which is normal for a two-dimensional game, but they lack a sense of depth.”
“Every obstacle and every screen is just the same visuals rearranged.”
- character development16 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is highlighted by its vibrant and engaging character designs, which stand out despite a simplistic art style. Reviewers appreciate the diversity and appeal of the characters, noting that they effectively contribute to the game's atmosphere, although some express a desire for more expressive animations during dialogue. Overall, while the character designs are praised, the surrounding graphics and sound elements are seen as lacking in detail and creativity.
“Despite the simplistic art style, the game features colorful character designs and diverse environments.”
“The character designs are great; it's at the forefront of the game for me, and it's the only thing that really engages you during dialogue. I wish there were more than just a couple of expressions.”
“Okay, that's the bad; the good is that the character design is spot on. The art has both a cool yet somewhat cute look to it, and the game flows nicely with it. It does a great job of making the characters feel like part of the world while also making them stand out enough that they don't clash and become missable.”
“On the graphics and sound side, the character designs are decent, and some of the special effects are nice, but everything else is just boring: level graphics and backgrounds are distractingly under-detailed, and the music is uninspired and forgettable.”
“One thing I have to mention are the character designs.”
“Despite the simplistic art style, the game features colorful character designs and diverse (enough) environments.”
- humor10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by its creative characters, fun dialogue, and a mix of witty commentary that enhances the gameplay experience. While some players appreciate the charm and style, others find the naming conventions overly simplistic and lacking in true quirkiness. Overall, the game offers a blend of humor that resonates well with many, particularly through its engaging narrative and character interactions.
“What we have here is a game that's oozing style, charm, and humor; it's got creative characters and fun dialogue; adds a novel investigation system into its super-solid platforming-and-brawling core; and last but certainly not least, has some of the most satisfying, most intuitive -- most consistently creative -- grappling/slingshotting ever implemented in a video game... which it puts to the test in some terrifically varied, hand-crafted level designs that always want to surprise you with new challenges and never settles into a groove.”
“Now Brian is my favorite 🤩 his character is too funny.”
“[A rich universe of characters, sharp and funny writing, fun adventure game goofs.]”
- atmosphere4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is enhanced by rich dialogue both within stages and in the hub, contributing significantly to character development and storytelling. Players appreciate this immersive quality, noting it creates a compelling and engaging environment.
“While most interactions occur in between stages in a hub, there is a lot of dialogue within stages which adds to the story and atmosphere of the characters.”
“- great atmosphere”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find certain sections of the game to be tedious and repetitive, leading to a sense of frustration with the grinding mechanics.
“Unfortunately, some sections felt a bit tedious to get through.”
“Unfortunately, some sections felt a bit tedious to get through.”
- stability2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game has been noted to have stability issues, with users reporting various bugs that affect gameplay, particularly during platforming sections.
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players feel that the game's replayability is limited, as once they complete the main story and collect items, there isn't much incentive to play again.
“After beating the game and finding collectibles, there's not much replay value.”
“After beating the game and finding collectibles, there's not much replay value.”
Critic Reviews
Double Cross Xbox One Review
Stop an interdenominational criminal from carrying out his mysterious plan as you collect clues to discover his true identity!
86%Double Cross Review – An Inter-Dimensional Investigation
Double Cross suffers from underwhelming combat and bland levels but makes up for it with a good story and fun platforming.
70%Double Cross Review
With the dull combat, front-heavy story, and basic detective moments taking up a large proportion of what is already a short game, Double Cross is boring or frustrating far more often than it is fun.
50%