Just Shapes & Beats

Okay so I know I'm just one voice in the literal SEA of reviews, but I can, with confidence, say this is one of my games of all time- sitting right up there between Rain World and Silksong. My friend got me to play this via a fanmade show on it and this game changed my brain chemistry. I know a lot of people talk about graphics or difficulty or stuff, so I'm gonna talk about what they don't I genuinely adore how simple the sprites are. They somehow manage to have so much life in them, despite being (like the name says) just shapes. Even down to the way the shape distorts when they dash makes it feel so zippy and alive. The characters themselves are incredibly simple looking, make out of basic shapes, yet the animations never feel choppy or forced. The flow together in a way that makes them feel alive, and adds so much personality. The music is incredible, and I really like how they had real creators make the tracks. While most of the music is dubstep-y, I really appreciate how not all of them are super in your ears. The attacks look and feel like the songs come to life (my personal favorite example of this is Art of War). The thing I don't see a lot of people mention is Casual mode. I used casual mode my first run, and it made my first playthrough a lot easier. I really like the addition, and the fact that it doesn't inhibit your ability to get achievements in story mode, or play like normal. Usually easy mode gives you less bullets, or changes the level so its nicer to you. I really like how JSAB handles it. It doesn't make me feel like I'm being babied. I really really do love the environments. Not just the backgrounds but in the levels themselves. I said it before, but each level feels unique. The levels are beautiful and I will continue to stress this because they're so diverse. I especially love when they take on themes, like Try This being themed after James Bond or Into The Zone being Vaporwave. Once you've got enough confidence and skill built up, you start to see how much work goes into making the game feel alive. The game itself has tons of play value, from fun achievements to extra tracks you can earn by completing challenges. It adds hours of extra gameplay for completionists and fans alike! The collaboration levels were definitely some of my favorite- especially the shovel knight tracks! But the thing Is. Out of all the reviews I've seen, not a lot of people talk about the story. Things like "its short" or "It was decent." So I'm here to sing the praises of JSAB's story mode. Anyways, to the story. Right of the bat, you're put into a level that teaches you the basics of the game. You don't know who you are, or why you're here, but you quickly start to learn that this pink stuff is bad, and that the triangles are useful in some way. Throughout the entire game, the MC (with I will refer to as Cyan to clear up confusion) never says a word, except for a few symbols that can be determined to be protests or insults. Yet you start to get a picture of what they're like via their actions alone. They feel like someone who was forced into the role of hero, and decided to take it on because the alternative was watching everyone suffer. They show frustration, they show personality. The way they interact with the other shapes makes them feel so alive, despite not even having a face. The scenes where they're in danger made me feel scared for them. Like, seriously, I love it so much and its so cool. I also really really enjoy the side characters too. A lot of games will make the side characters feel either too deep or shallow. I really like how JSAB does it. My favorite character in the game is Cube. They're a side character who acts as your main ally or guide of sorts- They're helping you literally right after the tutorial. I love Cube so much- they manage to have so much personality despite not even being on screen for 20 minutes. From their actions alone, its shown that they care DEEPLY for Cyan, and are willing to risk their life to save them. They're anxious, and some might find their sad nature and to be a bit annoying, but they just feel so human to me. They get scared and they panic and they make mistakes and they show they love you so much throughout the game- to the point I literally started panicking at the scene they got infected, and started crying when I saw them sob over cyan's body. The helicopter and the boat aren't safe either. Their animations alone show two shapes who care and want to help, and make them feel less like objects and more like friends. The bosses, especially ones like Lycanthropy, are menacing feeling and freaked me out at times. But out of all of the game's story? The best thing to come out of it, in my opinion, is JSAB's main villain. The Boss (Who I call Blixer) is, out of EVERY game I've ever played, the best villain EVER. Now this is just personal opinion, but I don't have words for how much I enjoy it. Every scene that features him feels alive and chaotic. Each fight against him teems with personality and progression. IN LLTNF he feels almost underdeveloped, like he is still learning how to fight and how to get used to his own body. He hits himself. He misses. He messes up and still manages to feel menacing while doing it. Despite being a villain with literally NO motives (besides being woken up from his nap) he takes up every moment he's on screen and he controls it. And after his transformation in New Game, he only gets better. I could go on and on about all the things they did right for Blixer's character. He feels put together, yet he also doesn't ever feel boring. He has no motives other than for the fun of it, and the fact that he is evil just to be evil adds so much to him. He feels chaotic and funny, yet scary at the same time. His design is really pleasant on the eyes, and you can practically FEEL the supervillain energy from him. I have never once been so scared and in awe and in love with a villain until I met him. Somehow, he manages to feel menacing and powerful even in the scenes where you aren't fighting him. I know it sounds childish, but I have never in my life seen a villain that has more aura. Genuinely, he destroyed the entirety of paradise and is still just acting like this is a normal tuesday for him. He is so cool that he can break cutscenes. I've seen people saying the twist was predictable, but I found it actually funny when he just pushed Cyan out of the way. A lot of people talk about Annihilation, but I think Final Boss is somehow better. It makes him feel scarier than Annihilation ever did. He gets his own INTRO. MID FIGHT. But Annihilation is definitely one of the things that adds to his character. At the end of the fight, where he repeatedly kills you every time you try to get up, it genuinely feels like your hopeless. A villain so powerful and so cool that he can break your respawn system until you're forced to give up. Watching your friends mourn your death, cry over you. The ending is so heartbreakingly effective, and it clenches my heart on a personal level. The only way you even beat him was because cube had those little triangles. It managed to have a good ending and still break your heart into tiny pieces. Even the credits scene shows how good of a villain Blixer is! He just shrugs off being killed and starts vibing! All in all, JSAB is an incredible game, one that changed my outlook on what you need to write an effective story and make a good experience. Sometimes all it takes is a bit of personality, some good tunes, and a badass villain.