PLATFORM: PC, PS4/5, SWITCH, XBOX ONE/SERIES (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Much like the game itself, this will be a short but sweet one! AVGN 8-bit is a retro-inspired platformer starring James Rolfe, AKA Youtube’s Angry Video Game Nerd, on a quest to defeat the mutant virus that’s infecting his NES console. You’ll control the Nerd through seven levels based on locations – and filled with enemies – from the AVGN universe, many of which will bring delight to fans of the show but admittedly may well go over the heads of anyone who isn’t partial to the Nerd’s sweary critiques of forgotten (usually for good reason) retro games.
The gameplay itself is very simple – you’ll run and gun through half a dozen levels, selected in any order you like from a Mega Man-style level select screen, each with alternate paths to encourage a repeat playthrough, culminating in a boss fight. You’re able to collect extra lives, power ups, and secondary weapons like beer bottles and an amusing screen-clearing F-bomb, and… that’s about it. It’s as simplistic and “retro” as it’s really possible to get, although that’s not really a bad thing – sometimes you want a daft bit of nonsense to pass an hour or so, and that’s exactly the niche that AVGN 8-bit can fill.
It isn’t the longest game, and neither is it the most difficult. Given the Nerd’s association with badly-made games, you might expect an actual AVGN game to (purposely) follow suit. But not at all, it’s perfectly manageable, even on the highest of the three difficulty settings. It won’t take long to beat, but it’s very entertaining while it lasts.
