Golden Force

62%
Game Brain Score Based on 48 reviews
  • gameplay
  • graphics
  • music
Golden Force Game Cover
Golden Force is a fun and varied 2d action game, but you'll need a lot of patience to overcome its challenging difficulty.
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Golden Force is a retro-style platformer with run 'n gun gameplay, featuring four mercenaries battling against the Demon King and his army across four islands. With various enemies, complex combos, and 2-player co-op mode, players can enjoy hours of gameplay in this colorful, pixel art world filled with cute kittens. Overcome challenges, unlock unique attacks, and defeat the evil forces to save Muscle Archipelago.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

62%
Audience ScoreBased on 48 reviews
graphics3 positive mentions
stability4 negative mentions
  • The game features colorful and well-drawn pixel art, creating an appealing visual presentation.
  • The music is enjoyable and reminiscent of classic platformers, enhancing the overall experience.
  • It offers a challenging gameplay experience that can be rewarding for players who enjoy difficult action-platformers.
  • The difficulty often feels artificial, relying on frustrating design choices rather than well-crafted challenges.
  • Gameplay is repetitive and lacks variety, with no significant upgrades or differences between playable characters.
  • The game suffers from numerous bugs and performance issues, which can disrupt the experience and lead to frustration.
  • gameplay16 mentions

    The gameplay has been criticized for its stale and shallow mechanics, with many reviewers noting a lack of variety and poor level design that hampers player engagement. The promise of a challenging experience is undermined by artificial difficulty, and the absence of distinct abilities among the four characters raises questions about their inclusion. Additionally, essential gameplay techniques are poorly explained, leading to frustration rather than enjoyment.

    • “There's only a handful of mechanics to keep in mind, but using them appropriately requires a bit of skill and forethought.”
    • “Niveau gameplay, on peste dans un premier contre l'absence de double saut (le saut de base étant ridiculement petit), et on comprend rapidement que les deux clés du gameplay pour s'en sortir sont le dash et une technique non expliquée par le didacticiel mais pourtant indispensable pour finir certains niveaux : matraquer le bouton d'attaque en plein saut pour ralentir sa chute et atteindre des zones inaccessibles.”
    • “Niveau gameplay, on peste dans un premier contre l'absence de double saut (le saut de base étant ridiculement petit), et on comprend rapidement que les deux clés du gameplay pour s'en sortir sont le dash et une technique non expliquée par le didacticiel mais pourtant indispensable pour finir certains niveaux : matraquer le bouton d'attaque en plein saut pour ralentir sa chute et atteindre des zones inaccessibles.”
    • “But when we get to the actual gameplay... well... that's the part when the game takes a turn for the worse.”
    • “Gameplay is incredibly stale, with the game's promise of offering a hard experience just ending up being artificial difficulty.”
    • “The gameplay is basic and shallow with poor level design and what feels like the view is too zoomed in to react properly to enemies, pitfalls, etc. If the four characters play differently, I couldn't tell in the two stages I managed to endure.”
  • graphics8 mentions

    The graphics of the game are praised for their great visuals and a nostalgic 16-bit aesthetic, delivering a clear and attractive presentation that enhances the old-school action platforming experience. However, the lack of customizable graphical options, such as resolution adjustments and visual effect toggles, limits player control over the visual experience.

    • “Great visuals.”
    • “Visuals are clear and attractive, with responsive, snappy controls, making for enjoyably old-school action platforming.”
    • “Other than sliders for audio and a toggle for fullscreen mode, the game offers no additional graphical options, so you cannot change resolution without resorting to engine commands or disable some visual effects like the screen shake.”
    • “Golden Force doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it does the nearly impossible by offering a truly 16-bit experience, from sprite-based visuals to the tough-as-nails difficulty.”
  • music6 mentions

    The music in the game is generally described as pleasant and catchy, with some users noting a nostalgic resemblance to the Crash Bandicoot series. While the soundtrack varies in its impact, it is complemented by enjoyable sound effects, enhancing the overall experience.

    • “The music is also pleasant to listen to, even sometimes reminding me of the Crash Bandicoot series for some reason.”
    • “I love the pixel art and the music is catchy, but what was a real treat was the action.”
    • “The soundtrack is sometimes more, sometimes less captivating.”
    • “The soundtrack is sometimes more engaging, sometimes less.”
  • stability4 mentions

    The game suffers from significant stability issues, with players reporting frequent bugs and occasional softlocks that hinder reliable gameplay. Despite some redeeming qualities, the overall experience is marred by these technical problems.

    • “This game is just too buggy to play reliably.”
    • “Glitches and occasional softlocks.”
  • optimization3 mentions

    The optimization of the game has been criticized for its inconsistent performance, with users reporting significant drops in frame rates and frustratingly designed sections that contribute to an unfair difficulty. Despite the potential for a great experience, these issues, along with a lack of character variation, hinder overall enjoyment.

    • “There’s a good game in here somewhere, and I really want it to break the surface, but performance issues and questionable difficulty are holding down a great game.”
    • “Performance tanks in places, unfair difficulty, and characters need some variation.”
  • grinding2 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessive, as the high cost of items necessitates spending numerous hours to accumulate the required currencies. This has led to frustration among users who feel that the grind is disproportionately time-consuming.

    • “However, the items you can buy with these currencies are crazily expensive, requiring hours of grinding to purchase.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

62% average critic score

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