Save The Astronaut

An incredible yet simple platformer in a classic 8bit style that is well worth its pence and more (cost me 79p in UK). These graphics are a great nostalgia trip, I am looking forward to seeing more from this indie dev'.

This game has a demo, a very cheap price and a straightforward description. I literally can't do any better, but I'll give this review anyways because metrics and because I want to tell the dev they did a great job. They chose a solid gameplay loop, built on it, delivered, priced it accordingly to its value for the consumer and even released a demo. This kind of pro-consumer philosophy deserves to be lauded and it's cemented OMP as ones to look for.

A compelling, harrowing tale of survival! Story is worth it just for Big John. One does wonder why retractable and spinning rock contraptions are everyone on this planet. /shrug

Cool game. Very good value for the price.

I don't have much experience with the genre to compare it to, as it hit its peak well before I started gaming, to talk about the gameplay in-depth. So, there's no need to focus too much on that. It's a lot like other classic platformers with a focus on perfection and figuring out the correct path. You're on a fairly strict timer that can be added to with oxygen tanks. I didn't feel there was a lot of time to take it in, because you dive into a frantic blitz to get through it before you run out of air, but that's in line with the difficulty-increasing tactics the genre's known for. The impressive part for me was the presentation and dedication to accurately recreating the experience it's inspired by. Once the game boots up, you're treated to a start screen and initial menu that is ripped right out of the 80s. From the color palette, to the sounds as you navigate, it all comes together look like something you'd have brought home and slammed into an early console. That theme sticks with it, too. As the level loads and transitions into the actual gameplay, it feels very "80s AAA". The environment takes a limited color palette and manages to make all the details pop and feel a lot more complex than what it actually is. Just like Pitfall, a little bit goes a long way in making the environment more than just an assortment of blocky pillars and switches. A testament to old school game design. The sound is phenomenal. Even as someone who isn't really into the genre, it was one of my favorite bits, and it felt exactly like something I'd expect to hear if I had a time machine and went back to a simpler time. This ties into gameplay, but the controls and movements are presented as accurately as anyone could get to an old school experience. You have four directions and two buttons to play around with, the astronaut moves with a sense of agility and floatiness that you'd expect from a certain plumber, and the level design makes the most out of the limited input options you have to make you feel like you're genuinely in control. Overall, I'm not into the tight time limit and what feels to be near-pixel-perfect path finding, but I'm not the target audience. It's a nostalgia dive that actually manages to properly recreate the experience and mirrors the handful of titles I actually have played from the 80s. That's not common. Many of the attempted recreations of past console generations nail some areas and completely miss the mark in others whether due to poor design or trying to insert modern concepts to widen the appeal. This attempt to recreate the early gaming experience actually nails it. If you're an older gamer who misses simpler times, it's great. If you're just curious, it's an accurate depiction of the era that inspired it. You won't feel cheated or as if you need to hunt down yellowing hardware and random cartridges to get the real thing.

A cool little game with crisp controls and a catchy tune/jingle, took me 50 minutes to beat in one go (missed 2 bonus levels I think, I`ll probably try to 100% it later). Some levels can be tricky requiring good use of the in-air jump. Got curious after reading a comment on some YT video, I don`t regret it :) Why is there even a demo for it? this game is the price of a cup of coffe!

Save the Astronaut is equally fun as it is hard! give it a try if youre up for a nice challenge and some charming retro graphics!