THE VIDEOKID (PC) - Review

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I think it goes without saying, but recently the west seems to have gained a newfound nostalgia for everything from the 1980s. The success of TV shows like Stranger Things and Black Mirror has been at the forefront of this, but the rise of indie games with pixel graphics has also contributed to the movement, and PixelTrip Studios' THE VIDEOKID is the latest such title.

Based largely on the 1980s classic video game Paperboy, THE VIDEOKID puts you in control of a Marty McFly-type character who must race to the end of his street in order to meet his girlfriend Jessica, all while delivering video tapes to certain homes as he goes along. As in Paperboy there are numerous obstacles that must be avoided as you make your way down the street. So far so good; a basic, 21st century reimagining of a cult classic videogame.

Where THE VIDEOKID differs from Paperboy, though, is in its graphical prowess and its unique use of 1980s references. As you make your way down the street, you'll happen across all manner of famous 80s characters, from Alvin and the Chipmunks, to The Terminator, and even obscure British creations like Postman Pat. If you were born and raised during the 1980s then you'll likely recognise most of these references to cartoons and films from the era, and this of course sets off your nostalgia'o'meter.

It can't be understated how awesome these references are. The first time I came across Transformers battling at an intersection - complete with transformations and perfect sound effects - was tremendous and had me smiling for a long time afterwards.

But therein lies the key issue with THE VIDEOKID - it mostly relies on its nostalgic references and the gameplay languishes behind. The game is set on a single street that never changes and mistakes made on one run don't transfer to another run as they did in the original Paperboy. This means there's no sense of progression and you're more likely to be angered and frustrated by failing than to adopt an "I can do this" attitude that some games instill in the player when he or she falters.

There's an in-game store where you can purchase extra tricks, or different costumes, but these add little to the game and are merely decorative changes rather than core gameplay ones. The extra tricks could have given more points or had some gameplay impact when progressing through a level, but instead they're just gimmicks.

The controls are simplistic, with the player swerving between three 'lanes' in order to avoid oncoming traffic and pedestrians, pressing up to jump, and the spacebar to throw a tape. This ease of access is great when you're starting out but it acts as a road block to any difficult curve. For the vast majority of each run you simply have to sit on the sidewalk, occasionally moving right once in order to avoid a pedestrian and then moving back again in order to avoid cars.

This ill thought-through simplicity extends to the delivery of tapes. It doesn't take long for you to work out that you have an unlimited supply of tapes, and so you can actually constantly tap the spacebar to fire off an endless supply of tapes, scoring as many points as is possible while also activating everything in the level. PixelTrip Studios need only have made the tapes finite in order to have created a more challenge and satisfying game, but alas they didn't, and so players are left with a broken system that can easily be abused by hammering a single button.

The game world isn't without its flaws either. There are many instances where various 1980s cameos will actually get in the way of mailboxes, preventing you from fulfilling your objective of delivering videos. There's also a severe problem of repetitiveness which crops up after about half an hour of playing the game; beyond that point you won't witness anything original.

Don't take these criticisms as a signal that I hate the game. THE VIDEOKID is a largely solid arcade title that generally manages to bring Paperboy into the 21st century. But it does feel incomplete. The addition of a proper story mode, or even just a finite amount of videos, would have made THE VIDEOKID a much more rounded and complete experience. As it stands, you'll be able to get a good hour or so of fun out of it, but don't be surprised if you quickly grow tired of its repetition thereafter.

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