Demon Turf Review

I’m always on the lookout for fun 3D Platformers. I think I’m trying to recapture or rediscover the magic and amazement I felt playing the classics on N64. At first glance Demon Turf, the new game from developer Fabraz and publisher Playtonic Friends looks like it has potential; thanks to its interesting art design using 2D character sprites in a 3D world. Not only does the art style remind me of my favorite classics but the core gameplay is heavily inspired by them as well. I appreciate when developers build on established ideas and game mechanics from older games and add modern design elements, along with their own unique spin and I think Demon Turf is a good example of that.

The game takes place in the Demon world and stars the spunky, plucky Beebz, a young (in demon years) female demon with a serious case of attitude. She makes it clear that she wants to overthrow the demon king and become the new ruling Queen. Most of the NPCs laugh her off, telling her she has no chance, but her faithful friend, Midgi, has her back. If she wants a shot at confronting the demon king she first needs to take over each of the four turfs in the demon world. Beebz can do this by completing the 7 levels within each turf and then defeating the leader of that turf’s gang. She also needs to collect fifty demon batteries in order to enter the King’s fortress. Luckily the reward for completing each level inside the turfs is one of those batteries.

The game features a sort of hybrid level system and layout, it makes use of hub areas but you can also access any level you’ve played from the pause menu, which I thought was a great feature. Forktown is the main hub area, and it’s made up of many buildings and dwellings that you can enter. Some of the buildings are empty and don’t have any real purpose, but others add a few different elements to the gameplay. There are a couple of different shops, each specializing in a different aspect. Some are purely cosmetic like the dye shop that lets you purchase hair and clothing dye, or the pet store where you can purchase an adorable pet that will sit on Beebz’ head while you are playing. There is also a store that sells mods that give you different buffs and bonuses to your movement and combat abilities as well as a few other options. Additionally, the town features a few mini-game/challenge opportunities. There’s an arcade where you can play the cartridges you find in the hub area (I love it when games have playable arcade games in them, they get bonus points if the arcade games feature a different art style than the regular game; unfortunately that isn’t the case here). There is also a combat arena, a challenge area, and a soccer golf competition The town also contains an art gallery – that doesn’t have any art – the owner tasks you with taking pictures to fill up the walls of the gallery. He gives you a specific list of pictures he wants in each area with a description of what he’s looking for and he’ll reward you handsomely for each picture you turn in. It seems like a lot of games have added photo modes to their games, some fit in well with the game whereas others don’t. In this case, I think it works decently well; I had fun looking for some of the items on the list and snapping the pictures. Some of the descriptions are very easy to figure out whereas others are much more obscure.

There are four gates in the city hub that lead to each of the gang’s turfs. There’s a nice bit of variety amongst the four areas; however, you have to play them in order and complete the base levels and boss before gaining access to the next turf. I was also somewhat disappointed that the turf hub areas don’t contain any extra elements like collectibles or secret items like the cartridges in Forktown. The first area, Apocadesert, takes place in… you guessed it, a desert area, and features lots of stone tower-like structures and lots of reddish-brown sandy backgrounds as well as a reddish filter in many levels. This is the first area you go to when you start your quest and I was immediately struck by how different it looked to other 3D platformers I’ve played. The game obviously has a hell theme, and I think starting the game in this environment was a good choice. The second area has a pirate theme and has more of a traditional look to it. It’s called ARMADAgeddon, which I thought was a great name, but I was kind of surprised that it was a typical, bright and sunny tropical-type setting. There are a couple more hellish-looking levels within, such as a poisonous factory that features a constant green filter/tint. More than a few of the levels kind of go overboard with color, almost looking like it’s an adjustable filter option. Maybe it looks better on a series console, but I think they should have toned it down a bit. The fourth area is snow-themed and I also thought it didn’t fit that well with the hell/demon theme, but there was some interesting platforming which gets fiendishly difficult at points.

I skipped over the third area, New Neo City, because it was by far my favorite and I wanted to save the best for last. It’s a semi-futuristic city, and it had what I thought were the most interesting levels. There’s one level where you have to go in and out of different buildings fighting enemies and solving platforming challenges which will unlock new pathways outside. There’s also a level that takes place on a series of highway platforms which was a lot of fun, but my favorite level without question is the subway level. You start on a subway train and must work your way to the front of the train on both the inside and outside of the cars. Once you reach the front you have to platform your way over to another train, but you can only do this in the limited window while the trains aren’t inside of a tunnel.

Something I really like about the level design of the classic 3D platformers like Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie is how each level had a playground feel to it, almost sandbox-like. There were always multiple things to do in each level and distinct sections you could explore. The levels in Demon Turf are very linear, and there’s not much to do besides getting from point A to point B. Each level does contain three hidden cakes that function as one of the two currencies in Forktown; additionally, each level has an alternate harder layout that becomes available once you beat the boss of that turf. Each of these levels contains fifty lollipops (the other form of currency). These are usually located on the path or just off the linear path you must take to beat the level. Some levels have a more wide-open feel to them where you have to go to different sections of the level to progress, but overall the levels sort of have an empty or hollow feeling to them. 

As soon as I started playing Demon Turf it was obvious that they took a lot of inspiration from Mario 64 in regards to the movement mechanics. Mario 64 set the bar pretty high, I think the movement in that game is fantastic. The moveset has a lot of variety and it’s a blast to run around and use all of Mario’s moves. Demon Turf however, doesn’t quite reach those lofty heights. The movement and jumping don’t feel as precise or fluid but they have given the players a decent variety of moves including some extra or auxiliary moves. Beebz can do a variety of jumps, including a triple jump that looks very similar to the Italian plumber’s triple jump; however, this one barely gives you any extra height on the second or third jumps. There are a couple of jumps that are very useful. Pretty much all the regular platforming abilities are present here: wall jumping, a floating spin, as well as a double jump (while in the air) which turns Beebz into a demon bat-thing until she lands – you can’t wall jump as a bat. The spin move can be performed on the ground or in the air and you can combo that into a longer somersault jump which is probably the most useful move in the basic moveset because it’s the farthest reaching jump.

There is a lot of precision platforming in this game and I wish the moves and controls were a little more forgiving, but I think part of the problem has to do with the camera. The game has the option to set the camera to auto (the game suggests this for newer players), out of curiosity I tried it out and it didn’t seem to make things easier at all. The game also has a focus on speed-running. Each level has a trophy time listed in the pause screen. I don’t think there are any in-game rewards for beating these times but there are a few achievements. Once you get comfortable with the moveset and the level layouts it can be fun to try to attempt to beat the times. However, one thing that bothered me about the time trial element is that the timer starts counting while the level is loading. You can check your current time by pausing the game, and each time I checked at the start of a stage, four to five seconds had already elapsed or as many as twenty if I watched the level’s intro cutscene.

To make things more interesting the game presents you with four special moves – each one is earned when you reach the boss of a turf. These abilities make replaying some levels much easier and allow the developers to get more creative in the designs of the later levels. To give you an idea of the abilities, the first one is a hookshot move and once you gain this ability a purple square will appear on anything you can hook – this includes enemies, objects, and most importantly little bars throughout the levels that allow you to launch yourself up into the air, letting you progress and sometimes skip sections. There is also a glide ability that allows you to temporarily turn into a bird, letting you reach far away platforms and areas. By far the most fun and interesting ability is the rolling spin move that you gain upon reaching the second boss, this is comparable to Sonic’s ball spin move and allows you to move across surfaces very quickly. I liked how each boss fight sort of acted as an introduction to each ability, requiring you to use the ability in multiple ways to defeat that boss.

The game features an odd but unique combat system. Beebz can shoot a hand-shaped projectile ahead of her and if you hold the attack button she will charge up and shoot a more powerful attack. You defeat enemies by knocking them off platforms or knocking them into a red obstacle. These are one-hit kills for both you and the enemies. The problem I had with the combat system is in regards to how you aim your shots. Instead of shooting in the direction Beebz is facing, the attacks are launched in the direction the camera is facing, which adds to the overall awkwardness of the camera system.

One of the things I really liked about this game is its level of accessibility and quality of life features. Some of the levels can be kind of tough, but there are a few mechanics that make the game easier. First off Beebz has the ability to place three checkpoints almost wherever you want within each level. I thought this was a great way to implement a risk/reward system. Some levels you could beat without placing a checkpoint, but others you’ll have to space them out. The other mechanic that makes things easier is the revolutionary gang in Forktown. Using their shop gives you the option to skip any level, you just have to pay the lollipop fee and they will obtain whichever level’s battery for you that you’d like.

The graphics in Demon Turf are sort of a mixed bag. I normally like low-poly art in games but so many of the textures in this game are kind of ugly and repeat too many times. I kind of feel like that’s the aesthetic the designers were shooting for, but I think they could have gone for the retro look while still making the game look good. They also overuse color filters in certain areas, which sometimes makes it difficult to see what’s going on. The character art and designs are on the opposite end of the spectrum. I think using 2D animated sprites was a fantastic idea, and makes the game stand out. There’s also a nice variety amongst the enemies and NPCs throughout the game. The sound design also fits in with the overall aesthetic and playful themes very well. It has sort of a kids cartoon feel to it mixed with a sort of anime hip-hop type of sound. I also liked how most of the important dialogue was voiced. These also have an anime sort of sound to them, and they are well done.

Conclusion

If you are really into speed-running 3D platformers then Demon Turf could be your new obsession. That’s obviously a very specific audience, but the game does that aspect very well. If you’re looking for some nostalgic fun then this game could also satisfy your cravings although it falls well short of the best in the genre. Modern quality of life features make up for some of its failings, but I can’t give this game my full recommendation; if you’re interested then I’d say wait for it to go on sale.

This game was tested and reviewed on Xbox One. All of the opinions and insights here are subject to that version. Game provided by publisher.