Flynn: Son of Crimson is the first major game from Studio Thunderhorse. They launched their Kickstarter in 2017 and since then have been picked up by a publisher via Humble Games. This seems like a good fit for both companies as Humble Games knows how to pick new and unusual indie games to highlight.
The game itself is an action platformer with light Metroidvania elements. Players control the titular Flynn on an adventure to restore his wolf guardian‘s energy which was sucked away by a mysterious stranger. Aggregate scores look good for the game but some things could be better about Flynn: Son of Crimson.
7 Best: Pixel Art
The pixel art in Flynn: Son of Crimson is some of the best indie gamers have seen in a while. It’s colorful and so well animated too. Players might waste hours away just looking at sprites go through their motions.
The animals stand out the most, such as cats running around in the background, or Flynn’s guardian wolf just resting beneath a tree. It’s a treat for the eyes whether the game is in motion or standing still.
6 Worst: Enemy Variety
The one downside to the art direction is that the game refuses enemies a lot. The first handful of stages of the game have several varieties of killer plants and goblins.
The game has more in store for players other than those two templates. but getting front-loaded with so many of the same monsters paints a poor picture of what the game has in store. There are some truly remarkable bosses in the game, for example, but overall the pacing of monsters introduced could have been better managed.
5 Best: Weapons, Powers, And Donkey Kong Barrels
Flynn’s starting sword is a great albeit standard weapon for an indie game like this. It’s fast, fluid, and easy to use so there’s not much to complain about. It takes a while but eventually, players will unlock new weapons and powers as well to increase the depth of combat. One of the cooler early powers, literally, allows Flynn to freeze enemies.
This ice blast can also create solid blocks to jump on while exploring the game’s many levels. Besides weapons Flynn has at all times, there is also a great variety of throwable items in the environment such as exploding barrels that react with decent physics. Flynn is a regular Donkey Kong in this game. Flynn: Son of Crimson is reminiscent of Donkey Kong Country in general from the barrel throwing to the overworld map.
4 Worst: Upgrade Layout
It takes a couple of hours depending on exploration time but eventually players will be able to upgrade Flynn. They can boost stats such as health or unlock new sword combos. The beginning layout for this upgrade tree does not feel that well planned out. The best upgrades early require multiple passes to make them available which feels intentional but not in a good way.
Some upgrades along these paths can feel like filler too. Having to go back to town to upgrade is also not the best. It would be more convenient for players to do it at their leisure. Tales of Arise, as one other recent example, allows players to upgrade with multiple skill trees at any time.
3 Best: Overworld Map And Level Variety
The map layout in Flynn: Son of Crimsonis very reminiscent of Donkey Kong Country, which was mentioned earlier. Players begin on an island and then make their way through several lands that all link together. It’s not exactly a Metroidvania but there are reasons to go back to stages. Some levels will even tell players on the map that there are multiple exits.
These exits may require new powers to access them such as the aforementioned ice blast. This is a cool approach to designing levels for a Metroidvania-like game mixed with those classic platformer franchises. There’s a lot of great variety in levels too from tropical beaches to snowy mountains.
2 Worst: Levels Are Too Long
The downside to levels is that they feel too long. Flynn: Son of Crimson can act like a Metroidvania at times with the backtracking powers, but levels have no in-between saves. There are checkpoints to fall back on but if players quit the game halfway through a level and then come back, that progress will be erased.
Levels are by no means a marathon but they are longer than typical platformers and are thus not great in bite-sized sittings which is a shame for the Switch. It might have been better as a Metroidvania but that opinion may differ between gamers.
1 Best: Accessibility Options
One of the better trends of 2021 releases has seen more and more games embrace accessibility. Flynn: Son of Crimson has three difficulties which are more than some but also not that shocking. The better addition though is invincibility. At any time players can make it so that Flynn no longer takes damage.
Having trouble with a boss fight? Turn that mode on in the options. There is no shame in this. It’s better to finish a game than rage quit it altogether. It’s nice to see developers start to realize this from the AAA studios to the indie creators out there.