Klonoa: Door to Phantomile (Sony PlayStation 1, 1997)

Have you ever heard the someone say that a video game felt like they were "playing a cartoon?"- That's what this game (and even more so with the cell shaded ps2 sequel)feels like, but more precisely, it feels like playing a Anime- i found myself sometimes just looking at the stunning scenery
This game is a creation of Namco- and there are many references to classic Namco games (ie pacman pin on hat, enemies that resemble those seen in Dig Dug, including their demise) it's also the First official 2.5D game [somewhere between 3d and 2d, think "Viewtiful Joe" *note others could be considered in this category, but didn't have the smooth transitions or the tag line of such]
This game is also a great game for children, due to it being highly colourful and cutesy- and the cut scenes are so amazing to look at they put FF7 to shame (art/graphically speaking) they look like something you'd see in a Pixar film. As well there are some puzzle elements at points to work your brain a little.
A few of bad points, this game is fairly easy, and kind of short (12 levels) so if you're a hardcore gamer beware, to everyone else (and Kirby fans)it'll be fun. The wa-hoo double jump shout may annoy you (even more so in the ps2 sequel Lunatea's veil). There is no Analogue availability (i assume the developers were unaware of the development and had finished the game before the release of the analogue/rumble controller). Although the cut scenes are great, there is few of the fully animated ones (lack of memory issues i'm certain). Finally, this game is quite rare, a disc version alone will cost you 20US or more online for the disc alone (full version around 50).
Overall this is a really fun platformer that really only suffers due to the time it was released and it going rather unnoticed at the time of it's release.

Initially when I heard of Klonoa: Door to Phantomile I was researching its PS2 sequel, which was apparently good enough to make it onto a couple top 25 PS2 game lists. Those lists were pretty much the only things that made me give the series a second glance. My curiosity aroused, I decided to get the first game in the series to see where the series came from. Upon playing it I wonder why the series is relatively unknown because it is actually fun. The story is this, you play as Klonoa, a small, childish, furry cat thing with large, wing-like ears and you're goal is to save the day from an evil force that was banished long ago. Apart from the basic story having no originality whatsoever there are a few quirks that do make it stand out slightly. Spoiler alert! For the those obsessed gamers who get angry at spoilers then skip the next 3 lines. It turns out that the world Klonoa lives in is actually some sort of dream or Phantomile and Klonoa was brought to it to prevent an evil entity from unleashing nightmare energy. He was given fake memories to care about the world so he could save it.
Game-play wise it is similar to the old Mario 2D games in movement except that the environment is 3D resulting in some interesting mechanics. Klonoa's special ability comes from his ring that he found in the woods one day and inside it was some bubble creature that became his best friend. On that note the ring allows Klonoa to catch enemies and then either throw them to attack, or jump off them in midair to perform a double jump. Now this game is not without its faults, the combination of 2D and 3D makes it sort of difficult at times to judge the distance of enemies or items. As far as length game length goes don't expect too much. I finished it in about 6 hours and the only reason to replay it might be to unlock the bonuses earned by saving creatures in each level. Also notable is that the game has a VERY childish tone about it as far as art style and difficulty. The game spews cuteness out every orifice and the difficulty curve is slight. While there are some tricky jumps and bosses the challenge is pretty much constant so new gamers might feel like they are accomplishing something. Also the gibberish that passes for communication as well as their squeaky voices might grate on a few people's nerves (not the case with me). Even with the heavily childish tone and possibly irritating voice work the game was decent. It felt nice playing it because I'm about 20 and it brought me back to day when I put in Sonic 2 on my genesis. At the same time playing something so childish sometimes requires breaks to play something more intense. I found myself taking breaks every 2 levels or so to play Team Fortress 2 to let the adult in me assert its authority. Allow me to just skip to the bottom line. If you can afford and track down a copy of your own then I do recommend this game, especially for kids or those new to the gaming scene that are turned off by casual games. Heck, if love cute, fuzzy creatures then this'll be just right.

An absolutely Fantastic platformer.

Fans of the classic Mario games, as well as the 2d rayman, sonic, kirby, and countless other 2d platformers will fall in love with the charms this game has.

While 2d platformers are not an uncommon genre (although, in modern gaming this genre is dying very quickly, which is a shame), this game was one of the first to incorporate 3D art and even environments with classic 2D sprites for an immersive and visually appealing experience.

The charms this game has may be viewed as kiddie, especially with the "gibberish" the characters speak, but that just adds to the upbeat nature of the game.

The gameplay is your basic, run and jump that are staples of every platformer, but what sets this game apart from others is, rather than jumping, kicking, or punching your enemies. You grab them and use them to either perform a "double jump" (its not a true double jump, but you use the enemy to get higher than a normal jump), as a weapon against other baddies, or to hit switches and objects to trigger them. I've seen some people compare this to Kirby's ability to suck up foes, but the two concepts are different enough to call each one unique.

The story I have not delved very far into, so I'll update this section when I get further, but if you're more curious, I'm sure some quick research on google will turn up a brief summary.

NOTE: I have not delved very far into the game, however, from the little that I have experienced, this is truely a gem of a game.

If you like platformers such as the mario franchise, you will fall in love with the world in Klonoa. If you can find a copy of this cheaply, I highly reccomend you take the opportunity to grab this rare gem.

Quite simply, one of the most underrated franchises of the modern era, Klonoa stands out as being a cross between Sonic The Hedgehog's animal-like protagonist, and Super Mario's simple, yet brilliant platforming schematic.

Klonoa, a rabbit-like creature lives in Phantomile, the world of Dreams. It is here that the stages, or Visions as they are called, actually reflect fantasies that can only be invisioned within your own head.

Being a curious youth, Klonoa's biggest question is "Why can't we remember our dreams, the next morning, and yet I can still remember a specific one from a long time ago, perfectly".

The dream is later shown to be the coming of the Spirit of Darkness, Ghadius, which indeed occurs.

I won't say anymore, so just buy the original PSone version, or better yet, the new Wii remake.

The game is beautifully presented. Though in 2.5D, like Donkey Kong Country, the game has its own brilliance, being one of the first PSone games to incorperate CG cutscenes with voice-acting (well... more like gibberish), lip-syncing to the words, and magnificent 3D graphics rivaling those of the sixth and seventh generation.

The music can be a tad annoying for anyone over the age of 8, but the game is geared to that audience anyway, so I can't complain. I would still recommend the soundtrack to anyone, because the later tracks convey some powerful emotions within the mind. (Seriously, try not to cry while hearing the Credits)

But the one and only REAL problem with the game is it's difficulty curve, in that THERE ISN'T ONE...

Klonoa: Door to Phantomile, and it's Wii remake are so short, and easy, that's it's just unbelieveable...

12 Stages, and 7 Bosses...

It's helped by the fact that some of the stages are longer than you would normally expect, even with Klonoa's above-average skip-running speed, a normal Vision will take maybe 4-6 minutes, about the same time as two stages in the Sonic The Hedgehog, or Super Mario platforming series.

But really, this game is pure fun, and if you don't feel emotion start to swell up inside of you, then you probably eat babies for breakfast, speak in reverse, and live in a fiery pit.

BOTTOM LINE:

Incredibly emotional, loads of fun, very underrated, and I highly recommend it to everybody who has a PSone, or a Wii. In fact, I challenge the world to play this game instead of your usual FPS's, RPG's, or MMO's.

Klonoa is a widely underappreciated classic gem. One of the most intuitive and plain fun platform games, it received broad critical acclaim and rightfully so, though sadly very little recognition amongst consumers. If you like fast paced action, vibrant and surreal graphics, a wonderfully quirky story and excellent music, then you shouldn't pass Klonoa by. I've loved Klonoa for a long time, and yet it never gets old. A true classic, and a must for anyone with a Sony console.