Think back to the 80’s. Recall the clothing style from movies like Beverly Hills cop and other crime flicks. Got that picture in your head? Good, because this game is that and soooo much more. That’s the mood which Bit Dragon is trying to instil upon you, and BOY do they succeed. The neon-soaked arena’s, the kicking beat of the soundtrack and let us not forget the action-packed battles. Pile on top of that an ever-changing environment, combined with abilities that you can gain between each round? And you’ve got yourself an arena brawler with high potential. Want to know what got my adrenaline running and made me, even while writing this review, smile and ecstatic? Then read on! Put some gel in your hair, pop up your collar and prepare your butt, because Hyper Jam? Is a world of crazy that is coming for you!
What is Good?
- Action packed: Ah yes, do not go thinking that you’ll be in for a snooze fest. Hyper Jam is locked and loaded and ready to take your slow ass down if you don’t pick up the pace! The enemy A.I. does its best to keep you on your toes, and hell, maybe even jump off of the map if you’re not careful. On easy, although shallow, they’ll give you a run for your money. At least if you dare to put all the bots into place. One on one it still is doable, but the moment you start cranking it up? So does the tension and adrenaline! And one word of thought guys. The Expert level of A.I. bots? Best training ever. Just don’t expect to be winning a lot in the start!
- Soundtrack: Mmm mmm mmm! God does this game’s music sound like angels singing into my ears! Each seperate map has its own soundtrack (please make some more tracks though!). For those who might know Dr. Disrespect, you’ll know. The moment you touch down on the map and you’d close your eyes to just listen? You’d swear that you were actually watching one of the Doc’s streams! They absolutely nail that 80’s feeling, but with a modern twist!
- Environments: Now onto the maps. Sweet baby jesus! Although everything you see is on a small form factor? You will still discover that there are a lot of tiny intricate details. Like little moving parts or sliding floors, changing the look and way you play on a certain map. Not one map will feel like the last and each one feels fresh and new! I could only hope for more maps in the future because the only sad part is, that they tend to get stale after a longer play session.
- Pure fun: Yeah you can already imagine, if you combine these 3 into one package, you’ll get a recipe for succes. And a great succes it surely is! Though it feels like a game tailored towards a niche segment of the gamer market, it doesn’t steer away from the fact that anyone could easily pick this one up and start enjoying it, alone or against friends!
- Multiplayer!: -But wait, there’s more- Last but not least, the multiplayer. You can tell that this game was built to be played with friends and foes alike. After experiencing how fun it actually is to suddenly see someone go for a kill, but accidentally jump off of a building instead? Is by no other means hilarious! (Sorry Rafael, I couldn’t let it be…). It all connects seemlessly with almost no loading time and without any issues! Just so you can get down on the ground for some mandatory killing in no time!
Mixed Feelings
- Ability pool: The ability pool that you get to pick from has a nice mechanic, but this one might be it’s achilles heel as well. Let me explain. At each next round, you get the oppertunity to enhance your character, which is actually really fun, as not one game will ever feel the same. Also, the one with the lowest points, gets to pick first. And that’s where they might want to rethink their strategy. Because a smart player might actually start losing on purpose a few rounds, just so he can get the better upgrades first. Putting them at an advantage at the later rounds and propelling them ahead for a win. So Bit Dragon, might want to rethink that part a bit, just to prevent a better player from doing such a low trick.
- Weapons: There really isn’t much variety in weapons at the moment. And although these are really fun to play with, it still feels like there are some missing weapons that could easily fill in the weapons pool. But for the ones that are in the game, they play amazingly well. My favorite one is the samourai blade. Nothing more fun then to suddenly dash into another one’s face and slash them open, muhahaha…
- Characters: 4 characters. That’s it. No more, no less. Okay there are skins you can unlock for them, but still… That doesn’t mean that a few extra characters to chose from was a luxury that we didn’t need. So might want to start thinking up some extra characters for us to chose from!
What is Bad?
- Why didn’t you buy it yet?: Really, I couldn’t find one bad thing in this game. Go! Sponsor a great dev! They really put down a well put together game! We can only applaud them for this.
Hyper Jam – 85/100
If only developers were more like Bit Dragon. Though not a large game or content filled. What they do deliver is solid and treated with care and love. This is one that does not come to us riddled with glitches or ghoulish gameplay. But with action and filled to the brim with enjoyable moments. We can only dream that Bit Dragon continues this trend in its quality deliverance! Now, if you’d excuse me, I’ve got some noobs to squash! Rafael, wanna play a game? Hehehe
