Akimbot

This self-described throwback to the golden era of PS2 platforming classics falls short of expectations.

Akimbot is a fun platformer that can be expanded upon with a sequel. The weapons are too simple for a sci-fi game like this, but they all feel fantastic to control nonetheless.

It was supposed to become a star and an iconic game, and it may have convinced someone of that. But certainly not all. Many expected more. The Developers failed to elevate any aspect of this game to anything more than very mediocre.

As a fan of 3D platformers, it was a treat playing through Evil Raptor's Akimbot. Despite minor performance woes and a lack of weapon variety, my experience playing Exe and Shipset’s big adventure was enjoyable. Polished 3D platforming mixed with good gunplay, an enjoyable narrative, and a ton of polished gameplay variety, Akimbot is a platformer anyone who loves the PS2 era Ratchet or Jak games should not miss. I hope that Exe and Shipset can take off on another adventure in the future.

As I said earlier, Akimbot feels like a condensed form of a Ratchet & Clank game, and that's great. The game is short, and most players will be done here in less than 10 hours. While there are collectibles in the form of data logs, they don't add much to the game besides backstory, so I don't think this is the kind of game you'd play through more than once. However, the shortened length keeps the story going, meaning things are interesting. Good, fluid movement backed up by a solid combat system means Akimbot is a game I can recommend to any 3D action-platformer fans looking to embark on a new adventure. The dynamic between our 2 protagonists is good, even if it does take some time for Exe to lighten up a little. As for Steam Deck performance, we are kept to 40 FPS and will still get frame rate drops occasionally. We're also running on low settings with resolution scaling, so the visual fidelity isn't particularly great. Still, the game remains perfectly playable, and at no point did I feel I died due to performance issues or lack of clarity. So I can give Akimbot the thumbs up to be played on the Steam Deck.

Akimbot's adventure isn't an unpleasant one, but its shortcomings are obvious. The potential of the fights has remained partly unexpressed, either for some too standard weapons, or for the limits related to the more particular and powerful ones.

Akimbot is a completely derivative title that manages to soften the rigidities of the predecessors of the subgenre it draws inspiration from, while inexplicably self-limiting in terms of its core gameplay mechanics. Fortunately, the title is packed with various special sequences that provide the production with plenty of variety. Even more so, it is an incredibly intense product, with no downtime. In a word, explosive.

Akimbot is, without a doubt, a good 3D platformer that honors its biggest and most obvious references, with good world-building, more-of-the-same narrative and competent mechanics. But it dares little and hardly dares to explore anything beyond what we have seen before.

Akimbot attempts to bring some nostalgia back to the modern gaming market, but fails to hit the mark with a plot that leaves no impact and easily forgettable protagonists. Although the game is partly saved by well-implemented platforming and shooting mechanics, unfortunately what it leaves the player with is only a sense of disappointment.

Akimbot may evoke a golden era of 3D platformers, but that’s pretty much all it’s good for. Taken on its own merits, at best it’s thoroughly mediocre.