After playing Twisted Pixel’s latest, Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley, it’s blatantly clear these guys are comedic geniuses. Their use of fourth wall breaking gags, mixed with in-joke references to classic games, comics and movies makes Comic Jumper a nonstop laugh-riot for nerds like me. And that’s why it’s so disappointing that the actual gameplay of Comic Jumper can’t keep pace and leaves a lot to be desired.
The story of Comic Jumper picks up with Captain Smiley and his sidekick companion, Star (a literal talking star on Smiley’s chest), attempting to rescue their receptionist from the evil clutches of Dr. Winklemeyer. However, Smiley and Star make asses of themselves in the process and lose all credibility as heroes, leading to the lose of funding for their starring-role comic series. With funding gone, Smiley and Star have no other option but to make guest-appearances in other comic series in order to gain back popularity amongst their readership and earn enough money to once again fund their solo book. And that’s where Twisted Pixel comes in (yes, the game’s developers make cameos throughout Comic Jumper), acting as the game’s “scientists” and catalyst for the cross-genre adventure, giving Smiley and Star the necessary tools to enter other comic dimensions (Barbaric, Silver Age, Manga and Modern).
Like I said, the fourth wall breaking nature of Comic Jumper’s plot is an incredibly creative and funny way to tie all of these vastly different comic book genres into a single, cohesive narrative. For a comic nerd like myself, Comic Jumper is a game who’s style caters to my every fanboyism. Seeing Twisted Pixel nail the look and feel of the Silver Age (cel-shaded graphics and a comic ethics code enforced) was pure awesome. And although I’m not a big Conan the Barbarian fan, the Barbaric comic successfully delivers the stereotypical genre tropes--huge breasted, scantily clad woman, prehistoric beasts, savages and a protagonist wearing some sort of badass helmet, a cape and a loincloth. I also loved the small touches, like how the screen cutoff border looks like the negative space of a comic page.
.jpg)
Comic Jumper is also riddled with humorous jokes in its every nook and cranny. Go to the upgrade/item shop and hear a riff on the now-classic Resident Evil 4 merchant (Whatcha buyin’...). Even the stats screen--usually something of little style and flash--has a hilarious song created and sung by the staff of Twisted Pixel. The gags fly nonstop, and most, if not all, hit their mark.
But style, charm and humor are not where Comic Jumper suffers. It’s the monotonous gameplay that makes this game a bore to actually play. Much like how the game jumps comic book genres, Comic Jumper also incorporates a number of different video game genres into its gameplay. The majority of the game is a side-scrolling shooter where you use the right trigger to fire and the R-stick to aim in 360 degrees. However, these extended segments are broken up by sections where Comic Jumper becomes a side-scrolling beat ‘em up, an on-rails shooter and, finally, a quick-time event title. But all of the different play-styles have their issues.
The standard side-scrolling shooter is basically a boring, constant trigger spam while spinning the R-stick to shoot everything in sight. The beat ‘em up sections are clunky, with a move set so limited it’s a wonder they were even included at all. The on-rails shooting portions of Comic Jumper, while producing some of the most action-packed sequences in the game, can be overly long without a fair checkpoint system. And finally, on the other end of the spectrum, the quick-time event segments are overly simplistic and lame. Comic Jumper might switch up play-styles frequency to keep the action fresh, but you’ll be never excited to play any of it.
.jpg)
Comic Jumper can be a frustratingly difficult game. There is no health regeneration, and checkpoints are few and far between. Also, you can’t save your progress mid-level, even with stages that are all relatively long. Starting a mission basically locks you into finishing it. Talk about infuriating for an Xbox Live Arcade title which, by nature, is supposed to be played in quick doses.
Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley is a tough game to recommend. Everything about its presentation is top notch and hilarious. However, the actual gameplay is just repetitive and boring. The comic nerd in me is ecstatic that Twisted Pixel made a game that is a love letter to one of my favorite entertainment mediums, but the gamer in me can’t look past the faults that hold back this otherwise ingenious title. If you, like me, are a huge comic nerd, give Comic Jumper a shot via the free trial version. For those who aren’t comic fans, steer clear, there isn’t going to be much offered here that will keep you interested.
