Nefarious

There is so much heart and so many great ideas in Nefarious that I want to see it as a better game than it is. I want to be able to recommend it as a hidden gem in Steam’s massive collection of throwback indie titles. But I can’t. It’s a sloppy game that feels in many respects half-done. All the heart in the world can’t make up for something that just isn’t fun to play.

It might be a bit trite to say that being bad never felt so good, but indeed, the villainous escapades of Crow and company make for an incredibly fun platformer indeed.

Filled with humor, abundant references to popular franchises, and solid fun Nefarious is a breath of fresh air. Crow’s surface villany is backed by a fair degree of heart and his interactions with the world’s heroes and the princesses he abducts tend to be entertaining for how they play with and subvert expectations. Topping that off with some epic boss fights you’ll generally experience from the other side it simultaneously thumbs its nose at and shows great appreciation for classics we’ve come to know and love. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to take the reigns and help the bad guy win for once it’s a fun ride full of surprises.

efarious features a concept that sets it apart from most games, only to throw the player into an experience that feels bland and repetitive. While a lot of the game's aspects are competent, the level design makes it duller and much more linear than it should and the very difficult jumping required will not make the experience more enjoyable, which feels like a waste in a game that promises so much.

Other than the amusing boss battles, Nefarious is barely competent. Controlling bosses from various genres is a novel spin on the concept of the boss battle and if this was just a series of battles, like Cuphead, there could have been something worth playing here. Everything else, which is about 90% of the game, is just soul-crushing. It is the kind of title that feels like work, and continuing is just exhausting because of how poor the playbility is.

Nefarious is a fun 2D action platformer that does things differently by placing you in the shoes of the villain while introducing some interesting gameplay mechanics to spice things up. The game has some comical moments with clever one-liners, and as for replay value, there is no extra content to unlock and playthrough when you have completed the game, but you can go back to stages to try and collect all the crowns so that you can see an alternate ending.

Despite an interesting world and characters you want to follow that bend the genre, it ultimately doesn't standout from a control or gameplay fashion.

The story isn't super deep, but it's not trying to be. This is a fun take on a villain doing what old-school villains have always done, and the thought process around that. If you're into simpler platformers that don't eat up a lot of time, and want some charming characters, Nefarious might just be for you.

The concept of Nefarious where you play as a villian is original but, the execution is lacking a bit. It feels a lot like a random 2D platforming game but, with amazing boss fights. Looking at the complete picture though you will enjoy the game as a whole.

All in all I enjoyed Nefarious. It throws a massive spin on princess kidnapping games and it allows you to experience things from the other point of view from normal.