Planet Aries, Radaxian Province: Young Alex Kidd, heir to the local throne, faces off against the minions of Janken the Great, who seek to take over the region. So much for the screenplay aspect which, in the 80s, is naturally limited to the bare minimum. More remaster than remake, this DX version respects as much as possible the structure of the original adventure. We will see later that this choice is not without negative consequences, but it at least has the merit of fulfilling its primary mission: to allow players in 2021 to enjoy the mythical Alex Kidd in Miracle World in technical-artistic conditions more than correct. And from this point of view, we can consider that the success is total. The unsightly chunky graphics of the 8-bit era and the horrifying "chiptune" music of yesteryear give way to a very pleasing soundtrack and visuals.
Thus, the screens are enriched with multiple atmospheric or light effects totally absent from the original work (rain, halos, slight distortion of the image under water, etc.), the graphics benefit from a skilfully dosed pixelation (sufficiently present to maintain a retro look and discreet enough not to seem dated), the relatively bright colors are softened by a slightly hazy filter, and the animations are much more detailed than before. Moreover, if the character of Alex Kidd remains recognizable thanks to his big ears, he is now decked out in a martial arts belt that twirls according to his movements. This subtle addition could well be a reference to Son Goku's monkey tail since, let's remember, Alex Kidd in Miracle World comes from the aborted development of a project stamped Dragon Ball. In short, the aesthetics of this new version has everything to please, and just press the right trigger of the controller to be convinced. Indeed, the developers have not forgotten the now traditional function before / after, which allows you to instantly display 8-bit graphics and thus measure the progress made in thirty-five years.
FOR BOOMERS MORE THAN FOR KIDS
Video games were better before? From a point of view of gameplay and general comfort, it is doubtful. Voluntarily faithful to the founding title, Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX proves to us once again that nostalgia is not all good. The controls may be limited to movement, jumping, punching and using objects, but the game is particularly demanding. Strangely, the developers didn't really choose to review this "die & retry hardcore" aspect. They have all the same reviewed the maneuverability of the hero... but in a very curious way since the latter seems even more slippery than before! During jumps, you have to constantly think about compensating for the extra step that Alex will inevitably take on the landing. Collisions with certain enemies also suffer from approximation, the fault of hitboxes that are too large and/or not permissive enough. These problems responsible for "unjust" deaths are all the more infuriating that, by default, the adventure retains an archaic system of lives. We start the game with only three lives, and the game over is final once we have lost them all. Then all you have to do is start all over again.
Hardly acceptable in 2021, except for the most masochistic among us, this principle can be softened thanks to the “infinite lives” option, which is actually quite badly named. The hero always starts with three lives, but once they are exhausted, the game usually resumes at the start of the current level, or at one of the too few invisible checkpoints. This means that everything before a particularly difficult passage will also have to be retried dozens of times, which is a 'good' way to artificially increase the lifespan. Despite the presence of a few additional levels compared to the original adventure, and a certain variety in action (underwater or aerial passages, boss sequences that combine rock-paper-scissors confrontation and more classic fights...), the game actually offers little content Understand by this that, in absolute terms, there is roughly a single hour of "raw" gameplay, which is finally stretched ad nauseam in as many hours as it takes to attempt and retry the most difficult passages until success.As for the reward that greets the final victory, it consists of the unlocking of two additional modes: Boss Rush to face the bosses in a loop, and Classic to relive the adventure entirely in retro mode . All this leaves an aftertaste of too little, especially since the game is sold at a relatively high price, since it flirts with 20€ in dematerialized form and 30€ in physical form.
