Kero Blaster

78%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,349 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • music
Kero Blaster Game Cover
Kero Blaster might not be Cave Story 2, but it’s still a neat game from Pixel.
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"Kero Blaster" is a challenging action-platformer game where players control a bipedal frog tasked with zapping baddies and rescuing his kidnapped girlfriend. The game features tight controls, pixel-perfect platforming, and a variety of weapons to aid in your quest. Set in a unique arrives-like world, players must navigate through different stages, battling bosses and uncovering the mystery behind the strange occurrences happening in the teleporter business.

  • iPad
  • iPhone
  • Mac OS
  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Phone
  • Play​station 4
  • Windows
  • Android
  • Mobile Platform
  • Play​Station
  • Tablet
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

78%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,349 reviews
story190 positive mentions
grinding26 negative mentions
  • Charming visuals and superb music create an engaging atmosphere.
  • Every weapon has a distinct use, enhancing gameplay variety.
  • The game offers a clear and challenging design, especially in hard mode.
  • The game is relatively short, with a playtime of only a few hours.
  • Controls can feel floaty and imprecise, making platforming frustrating at times.
  • Some bosses and level designs can feel unfair, leading to repeated attempts.
  • story857 mentions

    The story of *Kero Blaster* is generally described as simple and whimsical, focusing on a frog's mundane job of cleaning up a mess in a quirky office setting. While it lacks the depth and complexity of *Cave Story*, it still offers charm and humor, with a light-hearted narrative that encourages players to piece together the plot themselves. The game also features a hard mode that introduces a new storyline and remixed levels, adding to its replayability.

    • “The story, while at first seeming really simple and cartoon-like, has a lot of depth if you don't take it at face value, and a heartfelt message is buried under its superficial childlike colorfulness.”
    • “The story was a little vague, but the characters were cute and fit the tone of the story well.”
    • “In kero blaster, you play as a little frog trying to save the city of kero-tan; as the story progresses, you're allowed to get to know several characters and explore their own lives.”
    • “The last big difference is that this game isn't as story driven as Cave Story.”
    • “The story isn't elaborate, but I appreciated what it was trying to say.”
    • “Kero Blaster is a fun and cute retro platformer from the creator of Cave Story, but unlike Cave Story this game is more linear and less story driven.”
  • gameplay265 mentions

    The gameplay of "Kero Blaster" is characterized by its thoughtful mechanics and enjoyable run-and-gun action, reminiscent of classic titles like "Cave Story." Players appreciate the variety of weapons and upgrades, though some find the level design and certain mechanics, such as slippery controls, can lead to frustration. Overall, the game offers a charming aesthetic, engaging challenges, and a rewarding progression system, making it a solid choice for fans of retro-style platformers.

    • “Charming as hell graphics, fun as hell gameplay and a new game+ that is actually a new game.”
    • “The gameplay is enjoyable sidescrolling and shooting, combined with extra progression elements besides actual level progression.”
    • “The gameplay is perfect run-and-gun, where you can just let your reflexes take over.”
    • “You need to have a running start which isn’t always possible, which makes it bad level design and then bad gameplay.”
    • “The music is good, the theme of the story is good and upgrading and getting different weapons over the course of the game is fun too, but in the end, the gameplay is just way too slow and tedious.”
    • “The level itself requires some precise platforming that isn't well-suited to Kero Blaster's slippery controls and jetpack mechanics, but the boss in particular was brutal to navigate around, forcing me to buy a health refill bottle after (truly) countless failures.”
  • music256 mentions

    The music in the game has received widespread praise for its catchy chiptune tracks and nostalgic charm, often drawing comparisons to the acclaimed soundtrack of Cave Story. While some reviewers noted that it may not reach the same heights as previous works, the overall consensus is that the soundtrack is enjoyable, memorable, and enhances the game's whimsical atmosphere. Many players found the music to be a standout feature, contributing significantly to their overall experience.

    • “The soundtrack is incredible, among the best for this style of game.”
    • “The music really transports you back and the note choices call you back to some far away yesteryear gone by.”
    • “The final thing I need to say is that the soundtrack is excellent, the music is catchy, mysterious, beautiful and thrilling, all the right tunes on all the right moments and gameplay aside, one of my favorite aspects of the game and you'll be humming most of these themes in your head for at least months to come.”
    • “What is also disappointing is that the presentation and music is surprisingly subpar.”
    • “I cannot remember a single song from the game and pixel graphics look really barren in a lot of places.”
    • “There is no option to turn off the really annoying music.”
  • graphics169 mentions

    The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming, simplistic pixel art style that evokes nostalgia for retro gaming, reminiscent of 8-bit aesthetics. While some reviewers noted that the visuals may feel like a downgrade compared to the creator's previous work, "Cave Story," many appreciated the cohesive design and vibrant colors that enhance the gameplay experience. Overall, the graphics are described as cute and well-executed, complementing the game's fun mechanics and catchy soundtrack.

    • “Beautifully crafted little adventure filled with humor, catchy soundtrack and pixel's distinctive art style!”
    • “The graphics are a great throwback to the old 8-bit aesthetics.”
    • “Simply put, the graphics are stunning and the music is perfect.”
    • “I cannot remember a single song from the game and pixel graphics look really barren in a lot of places.”
    • “My only real gripe with this game is the graphics being downgraded compared to Cave Story; however, it's also a blessing since visual information (i.e. enemy projectiles) are much clearer than they were in Cave Story.”
    • “You can tell that the guy who created Cave Story is behind it with the art style in question, but it never hits the same level of charm or story that that game did.”
  • humor36 mentions

    The humor in the game is described as charming and quirky, featuring a funny storyline centered around a comical frog character and witty dialogue. While the humor adds to the overall enjoyment, some players feel the plot could have been more developed, with the gameplay and unique level design often taking center stage. Overall, the game successfully combines humor with engaging mechanics, making it a delightful experience.

    • “Beautifully crafted little adventure filled with humor, catchy soundtrack and pixel's distinctive art style!”
    • “While all of these traits are common, Kero Blaster is made unique by its smart level design, clever enemies, fun weapon upgrades, and most of all, pixel's distinctive difficult-to-describe charm and humor.”
    • “The funny frog man shoots guns, isn't that quirky?”
  • replayability31 mentions

    The game offers significant replayability through various modes, including a hard mode and new game +, which enhance the experience despite its short completion time of 2-3 hours. Players appreciate the weapon variety, upgrades, and dynamic challenges that encourage multiple playthroughs, although some express a desire for even more content. Overall, the well-crafted design and engaging mechanics contribute to a high replay value, making it a worthwhile experience for those seeking additional challenges.

    • “Difficulty seamlessly adjusts itself through the gameplay and seems to have lots of replay value thanks to the weapon variety, upgrades, and difficulty.”
    • “That being said, this game on its own is a super well-crafted experience with high replayability and a world I'd like to see visited again.”
    • “Kero Blaster starts out as a decently clever platformer, with a very well thought-out weapon upgrade system that provides great replayability, and semi-dynamic bosses.”
    • “If I were you, I'd wait for it to go on sale again like I did because I was able to beat the game in 3 hours and there isn't much replay value unless you just want to replay the whole game over again for fun.”
    • “It's a little short, about 2-3 hours to beat, but there is a new game + mode that extends the replayability.”
    • “Cheap little platform shooter with a handful of challenges to give it more replayability despite its short length.”
  • grinding28 mentions

    Players have mixed feelings about grinding in the game; while some find it addictive and a necessary means to enhance their weapons and health, others describe it as tedious and time-consuming, especially in the later stages. The need to farm coins from enemies and treasure boxes can lead to repetitive gameplay, particularly when facing poorly designed bosses. Overall, grinding is seen as a double-edged sword that can either enhance the experience or detract from it, depending on the player's perspective.

    • “Combine these two particular bosses for this achievement, and you can understand how long and tedious of a grind this achievement is.”
    • “The music is good, the theme of the story is good and upgrading and getting different weapons over the course of the game is fun too, but in the end, the gameplay is just way too slow and tedious.”
    • “Boasts tight well-crafted gameplay and a hard mode that's a complete redesign of the entire game, but gets very grindy, as health and weapon power must be upgraded with coins that don't drop in adequate amounts until near the end of the game, thus must be farmed by re-entering the same screen again and again.”
  • character development12 mentions

    The character development in the game is praised for its unique and charming designs, blending whimsical innocence with mature themes, which appeals to both children and adults. The pixel art and music enhance the overall experience, while the distinctiveness of the characters and enemies adds personal charm, making them standout elements of the game. Overall, the character designs contribute significantly to the game's engaging atmosphere and level of challenge.

    • “It retains all the classic hallmarks of Pixel's work, the chunky great pixel art, bopping music by Pixel himself, unique character design, a rather interesting story that blends cutesy whimsical innocence with certain mature elements, and of course, jetpacks.”
    • “The level design is amazing with 10 stages in total, and the enemies/character design might be my favorite thing in the game next to bosses. They are extremely unique with the personal charm that is found in all of Pixel's games.”
    • “Kids (and children at heart) can easily find charm in the cute character designs and music.”
    • “The character designs and environments are very cute, but the game lacks depth in character development.”
    • “While the character designs are solid for the main cast, the overall character development feels shallow and uninspired.”
    • “The cute character designs are appealing, but they don't translate into meaningful character development throughout the game.”
  • atmosphere8 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is described as charming yet simple, with a low-budget aesthetic that lacks the polish of similar titles like Cave Story. The color palettes effectively convey different moods, such as calmness in icy environments and danger in industrial settings, while the music enhances these feelings. Overall, despite its mundane elements, the atmosphere remains engaging and contributes to the game's depth and challenge.

    • “When you're in the ice level, the color palette is mainly whites and blues, creating this sense of a calm, cool atmosphere and the music complements it, while the stark greys and other industrial type colors give off the impression of danger or fear.”
    • “The story, characters, and atmosphere are a lot more mundane and simple in comparison...but also just as charming at the same time.”
    • “The story, characters, and atmosphere are a lot more mundane and simple in comparison, but also just as charming at the same time.”
    • “Similar in atmosphere and gameplay to Cave Story, but shorter and with minimal plot, this cute game has plenty of depth and challenges to maintain interest past the initial campaign.”
  • stability2 mentions

    Overall, players report that the game runs smoothly on the Nintendo Switch, indicating a stable performance on that platform.

    • “Give it a try, I played it mostly on the Switch and it runs great there as well.”
  • emotional2 mentions

    The game presents a seemingly simple and cartoonish story that, upon deeper reflection, reveals significant emotional depth and a heartfelt message beneath its colorful exterior. This contrast between surface simplicity and underlying complexity resonates with players, enhancing the overall emotional experience.

    • “The story, while at first seeming really simple and cartoon-like, has a lot of depth if you don't take it at face value, and a heartfelt message is buried under its superficial childlike colorfulness.”
  • optimization2 mentions

    Cave Story is noted for its rigorous optimization, demanding high performance from players and not allowing for mistakes. This aspect contributes to a challenging gameplay experience that encourages skill development.

    • “Cave Story was your unrelenting personal trainer that wouldn't accept a sub-par performance.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

75% average critic score

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Play time

5hMedian play time
6hAverage play time
3-9hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 10 analyzed playthroughs

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