Tomba! Special Edition

About

Tomba! Special Edition is a remastered version of the classic platformer game where you play as Tomba, a fierce warrior on a mission to defeat nefarious pigs. This edition includes quality of life improvements such as save anywhere, rewind, and analog control toggle. It also features a museum, new soundtrack, and an interview with the creator, Tokuro Fujiwara.

Genres & Tags

Action

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 518 reviews

music36 positive mentions

stability4 negative mentions

Nostalgic experience that brings back fond memories of the PS1 era.
Quality of life improvements like save anywhere and rewind feature enhance gameplay.
Remastered soundtrack and bonus content in the museum add value for fans.

The port is considered lazy, lacking significant graphical updates and features.
Audio issues, including glitches in the remastered soundtrack and no volume control, detract from the experience.
Frequent loading times and bugs, including game launch issues for some users, hinder playability.

music
242 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
83%
2%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the remastered soundtrack for its improved quality and instrumentation, while others express disappointment over its implementation, citing issues like awkward looping and glitches that disrupt immersion. The original soundtrack remains a favorite for many, with some players opting to switch back to it due to the bugs and inconsistencies in the remastered version. Overall, while the remastered music adds a nostalgic touch, it is marred by technical issues that detract from the experience.
- “Love the remastered soundtrack as well!”
- “The music is wonderful; I would deliberately mess around in a few areas just so I could hear it for a while longer.”
- “Maybe best of all is the brand new soundtrack; I was cautious about it before release because I enjoyed the original so much, but so far pretty much every track has felt like an improvement or at least of equal quality.”
- “However, the same can't be said for the original music soundtracks as I was quite disappointed to see that there was a noticeable slowdown that made some songs sound quite glitchy and generally unpleasant to listen to, unlike the remastered soundtracks.”
- “The 'remastered' soundtrack, a mix of actually-remastered versions of the original music and poorly done remixes, is awkwardly faded into the game - which is made all the more blatant when you switch to using the original soundtrack and it syncs up perfectly with the game.”
- “The original soundtrack is available but you have to manually switch over to it every time you boot up the game and certain Steam achievements won't pop if you're listening to the original soundtrack, which was annoying.”
graphics
90 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
79%
3%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players expressing disappointment over the lack of significant updates or remastering compared to the original. While some appreciate the nostalgic charm and the blend of 3D environments with 2D spritework, others criticize the visuals as grainy and outdated, wishing for enhancements similar to other remastered titles. Overall, the game maintains its original aesthetic, which may appeal to long-time fans but leaves some players wanting more modern graphical improvements.
- “Charming graphics and ridiculously fun.”
- “The visuals are a nice blend of 3D environments mixed with 2D sprite work, and it is honestly pretty amazing and ambitious for a game developer's first outing in the 90s.”
- “This whimsical atmosphere has stuck with me for 20 years, and I still couldn’t help myself from just enjoying the visuals in my most recent playthroughs.”
- “I admit that my expectations for this special edition were perhaps a bit higher than the final result; I was hoping for a bit of a graphical makeover so that the colors and lines would be more refined in the picture and would also be more striking to the eyes.”
- “The visuals also seemed grainy from what I have seen; I was expecting somewhat of a remaster and not just a straight-up copy-paste (which I could have lived with if I was able to actually play it).”
- “As far as I can tell, there's no graphical improvements or upscaling at all.”
story
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
89%
5%
The story of the game revolves around Tomba, a feral jungle boy on a quest filled with charming characters and engaging fetch quests, which some players find enjoyable despite their repetitive nature. While the narrative is reminiscent of classic 80s and 90s games with simple messages and subtle clues, the convoluted quest design and confusing map can lead to frustration, particularly for those aiming for 100% completion. Overall, the game offers a light-hearted adventure that blends platforming and RPG elements, appealing to fans of the metroidvania genre.
- “The story puts you in the shoes (or lack thereof) of Tomba, a feral jungle boy armed with a deadly blackjack and a sick mane of pink hair, quite possibly making him the only male to rock the color and not have preferred pronouns!”
- “It’s full of charming characters and cool quests that keep you engaged.”
- “Tomba, or as I remember it as Tombi, was an interesting platformer as it blended 2D and 3D together into 2.5D, but it also threw in some RPG elements like leveling up, side missions, and a mission-based structure like an RPG's storyline.”
- “The text of the quests in the menu isn't super helpful.”
- “Now, 20 years later, I understand why; the convoluted map and quest design and cut content has you traveling back-and-forth a ton to figure out where you need to go and when.”
- “The NPC and story is typical classic old school style with simple messages like those classics in the 80’s and 90’s games with subtle clues, so don’t go expecting a deep cast or story.”
gameplay
46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
80%
7%
The gameplay of Tomba Special Edition is a blend of puzzle platforming and metroidvania elements, featuring 3D characters on 2D planes and a focus on exploration and problem-solving. While the game retains its original mechanics and graphics from the PS1 version, it introduces modern conveniences like save-anywhere functionality and a rewind feature, which enhance the experience despite some lingering issues such as poor keybinding and sound quality. Overall, the gameplay is engaging and nostalgic, appealing to fans of the original while offering a few quality-of-life improvements.
- “After having played this game for myself and completed it fully, I can confidently say that Tomba Special Edition is a puzzle platformer with some Metroidvania elements incorporated into the gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is still very solid, and if one can see past the 'outdated' graphics, the charm and fun of the game will be quite apparent.”
- “It’s a unique game with odd mechanics including over 100+ mini events to do, some requiring using cryptic messages from NPCs, finding items, acquiring an ability, solving minor puzzles, or finding people.”
- “Unfortunately, due to the nature of these early games designed around such complex structures for gameplay, problems like these were bound to arise despite being a direct emulation of the PS1 game itself.”
- “It has no widescreen support, terrible keybinds on keyboard (with somehow Xbox glyphs being shown during gameplay) that you cannot rebind from the game, the simplest CRT filter known to mankind and a save state / rewind functionality that any emulator could've provided you in the last 20 years.”
- “The only real changes to the gameplay are being able to save wherever you want and the rewind feature, and both of those are nice but it's still pretty much the same game that released on PlayStation, for better or worse.”
optimization
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
63%
19%
Overall, the optimization of the game has received mixed feedback, with some users reporting no significant performance issues or lag, while others experienced random drops in performance. Many players noted that cutscenes and videos ran smoothly, suggesting that the emulation maintains the game's essence despite some criticisms of its approach. However, it appears that performance may vary depending on the hardware used, with older systems potentially struggling more than newer ones.
- “I personally have had no issues with performance.”
- “Additionally, I haven't noticed any marked performance issues while playing, either.”
- “Cutscenes and videos play fine, and performance seemed great.”
- “Dropped in performance quite a bit and would just start lagging randomly then stop.”
- “The reviews saying that there are many performance issues are likely on a laptop from the stone age.”
- “Performance-wise, it was playable.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
Overall, the game's stability is improved compared to the original, with smooth performance on the Steam Deck. However, players have reported occasional music glitches in specific areas and some odd character animations during combat.
- “It runs so much better than the original and performs excellently on the Steam Deck.”
- “A blast from the past, but the music glitches out in a few areas in the Dwarf Forest when the curse is lifted, specifically in the Watch Tower and Charity Square.”
- “I have noticed a few weird glitches where my character will float in a strange way when getting hit, almost like he is holding a parasol and a gust of wind caught him.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized as quirky, creative, and consistently hilarious, with some players finding the removal of certain features, like text speed adjustments and the complete absence of Japanese, to be amusing in itself.
- “It's so quirky, creative, and hilarious.”
- “It removed some minor features like adjusting text speeds, and removed Japanese entirely, which is just kind of funny.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
The game's atmosphere is described as whimsical and nostalgic, perfectly capturing the essence of adventure games from its era. Players appreciate the visuals, which have left a lasting impression over the years, enhancing their overall enjoyment during playthroughs.
- “This whimsical atmosphere has stuck with me for 20 years, and I still couldn’t help myself from just enjoying the visuals in my most recent playthroughs.”
- “It had a fitting atmosphere to play an adventure game in that era of gaming as a teenager.”
- “This whimsical atmosphere has stuck with me for 20 years and I still couldn’t help myself from just enjoying the visuals in my most recent playthroughs.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is noted for its ability to blend elements from both action and adventure genres, creating a unique experience that resonates with players on a deeper level. This fusion allows for a rich narrative and character development that enhances the overall emotional engagement.
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as a lazy cash grab, indicating a lack of effort in providing value to players while prioritizing profit.
- “Unfortunately, this is a lazy cash grab.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect to be somewhat tedious, particularly due to the repetitive nature of back-and-forth tasks, though it is not considered a significant issue.
- “Nothing major, but it can be a little tedious when you go back and forth.”