Gaming Editor Benjamin Oakden reviews the Nintendo Switch release of Intrepid Izzy, finding it a mixed experience
Intrepid Izzy was received for free for review purposes
Introduction
Intrepid Izzy is a platform game created by Senile Team, an indie developer known for creating modern titles for the cult Dreamcast console. Sadly, when taken out of this context and placed alongside indie games developed on modern systems, the gameplay falls rather flat.
Gameplay
Intrepid Izzy is a platformer with the main character of Izzy using physical combos and special moves to defeat enemies. Although Izzy is responsive to control, her moveset feels completely uninspired- she has Hadouken and Shoryuken attacks that have been completely lifted from Ryu of Street Fighter fame. Her upgrades too have been egregiously copied from other games, with the Flying Squirrel upgrade taken from the Super Mario franchise, and the Bat upgrade being used by Shantae. The only original thing in Izzy’s moveset is her basic combo, a generic set of punches and kicks that feels rather unsatisfying to defeat enemies with. Enemies have no kind of knockback from Izzy’s moves and a cheesy sound effect plays when you make contact with a hit, making combat feel completely unengaging.
Level Design
Intrepid Izzy’s levels are quite open-ended, which was a good decision to encourage player exploration. I enjoyed how levels connected into each other and required backtracking, giving the game a Metroidvania feel. However, although the levels were structurally sound, the obstacles within them weren’t particularly interesting. I was disappointed with how the theming of the levels offered very little relevance to the actual gameplay; enemies were repeated throughout each section of the game, and the platforms and spike traps could have been in any platformer. A chocolate mine is an interesting level theme, but nothing within the level matches that theme- the levels, and ultimately the game as a whole, seem to lack identity.
I was disappointed with how the theming of the levels offered very little relevance to the actual gameplay
The most frustrating element of Intrepid Izzy’s level design is its enemy rooms. The game proudly proclaims to be a beat-em-up as a part of its apparent ‘genre defining’ style, but the only way it does this is by slowing the pace down completely and forcing you to defeat a series of enemies to progress. Given that the lack of enemy variety and Izzy’s unoriginal combat, it’s frankly baffling that Senile Team would choose to take the player out of the best part of their game, the exploration, and make you sit through enemy rooms time and time again. This frustration extends to boss fights too, with them often falling into the same formula of making you dodge their attacks and then hitting them while they’re stunned. The first boss is repeated and, unsurprisingly, they often have no relation to the theme of the level.
Presentation
This theme of Intrepid Izzy lacking identity is something that continued to spring to mind as I continued through the game. Given the open splash screen of the game shows Izzy opening a treasure chest I assumed she was some kind of treasure hunter, but it is really left to the player’s imagination. Nothing about Izzy’s character design reflects her character’s status within the game. The game is rather light on story, largely being told through dialogue boxes. An indie 2D platformer doesn’t need to have a strong story, but some semblance of an overarching plot would have been appreciated to give some kind of rationale for the gameplay and encourage the player’s progress through the game.
Perhaps the most commendable thing about Intrepid Izzy is its presentation
Perhaps the most commendable thing about Intrepid Izzy is its presentation. The game runs at a smooth 60 frames per second throughout, and the visuals are bright and colourful with some interesting backgrounds. The soundtrack too is generally of high quality, with the upbeat tracks being perfect for a light-hearted platformer, although I felt the music for the town areas to be a little grating and repetitive. The menus and 3D models are perhaps a little cheap looking, but for an indie team dealing with decades old hardware, Senile Team do a respectable job in this area.
Rating
4/10
Conclusion
Sadly, Intrepid Izzy is a game which brings very little originality to the table. Although the developers are due praise for the performance and the interconnected level design, there is ultimately nothing here that hasn’t been done better in other platformers. Izzy’s moveset is unsatisfying and ripped from other, more iconic protagonists, level obstacles are generic, and combat is a complete chore that deeply affects the game’s pacing. Instances of fun writing and interesting level ideas can’t redeem the game’s poor world building and disconnected theming. The only true appeal of the game is the novelty of seeing a new game release for the Dreamcast, but as a £10 release on modern consoles, the game doesn’t even have that string to its bow. There are countless cheap indie platformers available that offer far more novel gameplay ideas than Intrepid Izzy does.
Trailer
Specifications of system used for review:
Nintendo Switch – Standard Model
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