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Poncho (PC)

Poncho (PC) - Review

by VGChartz Staff , posted on 16 November 2015 / 6,728 Views

After two years of anticipation, brought on largely because I saw the game being showcased at almost every video game conference I attended during that timeframe, Poncho is finally here, and not a moment too soon. But does Poncho live up to expectations? As is often the case in gaming (and life in general), my answer to that question is slightly more nuanced than a binary yes or no.


Poncho's most immediate feature is its gorgeous pixel art. Real care has been taken to craft one of the prettiest pixel games of recent memory, and it truly stands as a testament to how much care and attention Delve Interactive has put into the game. Cherry blossoms stir in the wind with fantastic clarity, NPCs animate with genuine lovability, and the world as a whole feels incredibly vibrant alive, which is quite an ironic thing to say about a post-catastrophe pixel game. 

Poncho’s core mechanic also pleases the eye, and adds an extra layer of difficulty to an already challenging platforming experience. A simple press of the right or left trigger will bring Poncho into the foreground or force him into the background, respectively. The uses made of this mechanic consistently impress, right up to the final moments of the game.

The soundtrack delights every step of the way through Poncho’s unfortunately limited campaign. I particularly enjoyed coming across caves or open woodland simply because they played host to some beautiful music during my exploration of them. I still find myself humming the music to levels days after completing the game, which is always the sign of a stellar soundtrack.

Poncho Sky

It’s a shame, then, considering how I've been almost universally lauding Poncho up until now, that the rest of the game simply doesn't live up to the standard set by the presentation. It feels like the team at Delve Interactive was afraid of experimenting or expanding on certain concepts. After exploring the first level for a bit, for example, you’re given a red box which contains a new ability that allows you to slam into the floor and break unsettled ground. Thereafter I was anticipating the addition of other new abilities that would help to expand the gameplay, but they never materialise.

Later on in the game there's a lake stage which offers a brilliant new perspective of looking at the world through water and introduces its own unique challenges. Unfortunately, the feature only appears very briefly - for about five to ten minutes - and is then quickly discarded like a bad idea, never to be seen again. The same happens to a number of other new mechanics - they're introduced then rapidly shelved. On the verge of having greatness at their fingertips, the developers at Delve Interactive narrowly manage to let it slip away.

poncho woods

The narrative also lacks depth. A cryptic scene at the start and a few lines of dialogue are all you have to go on until the very end of the game, at which point everything is quickly explained and some context for your actions and the events in the game is finally supplied. What little narrative there is is actually very well written, but there's simply not enough of it and the pacing borders on the bizarre.

There are also some slight issues with the gameplay. Jumping off the corner of a ledge will sometimes result in a slight jump, which means you instantly die. Moving platforms that transition between the background and foreground are sometimes out of sync, and there's a lack of visual cues to help identify the 'layer' of the world you're on when you're in the air.

Crazy platforms

It’s a shame that Poncho has so many glaring issues. There are inspired moments throughout, and the pixel art is of an incredibly high quality, but Poncho often fails to capitalise on the great ideas that are briefly teased. It’s still an enjoyable game to experience - my brother cannot wait to buy the game and experience everything it has to offer after playing seeing me play it - but it could have been deserving of so much more than a lukewarm recommendation. 


Note - I started reviewing Poncho on PS4, but half-way through came across a game-breaking bug that required me to start from scratch on PC. Speaking with the developers, they've confirmed that this bug is fixed on PC, but with a fix for PSN taking so long, it makes me reluctant to recommend buying the game on PS4 until a patch is released to fix the issue. 

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Dan is a writer for VGChartz.com, and can be followed on Twitter @Caesoose. He produces YouTube videos of the games he reviews, and also dabbles in video game development in his spare time under his indie studio, Caesoose Studios



This review is based on a digital copy of Poncho for the PC, provided by the publisher.

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