Guacamelee!

Sure, the camera in co-op mode could’ve used some work, and some enemy types and variations got a tad stale by the end, but by no means does that overshadow everything else the game brings forth. In an age where we don’t see these kinds of games crafted with such passion anymore, or even barely at all, Drinkbox Studios saw an opening, capitalized on it, and sent Guacamelee frog splashing its way into my heart.

Drinkbox has crafted a brilliantly unique world on top of a platformer that combines the best of the classics, along with a few of its own ideas — things like two player local co-op is a feature I don’t think I’ve ever seen in a Metroidvania game, and I challenge more developers to try to include it.

Regardless of if you are looking for something to pass the time, something portable or something more hardcore, Guacamelee delivers on all these fronts and more. It's fun, challenging and above all else a joy to play.

Switching between different dimensions does more than changing up the visuals. You can be attacked by enemies from both worlds, meaning you will have to constantly (and sometimes frantically) switch between dimensions to survive. [May 2013, p.94]

Without reservation, Guacamelee is easily DrinkBox’s finest game to date. It subscribes to the design that made Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night the classics that they are, but it offers its own unique spin on the genre.

Simply put, Guacamelee! is a fun game with a great colour palette, excellent combat and plenty of laughs.

The perfect mix between action, exploration, puzzles, humor and love for videogames. One of this year's greatest surprises.

For a couple of pounds more than the cost of a burrito, it’s a tasty morsel of personality – but prepare yourself for a technically demanding challenge.

This is just a great example of how to evolve classic ideas to make them feel fresh. Guacamelee! is one of those games you will play till you finish it.

Guacamelee! is a fantastic game. It has style in spades, charming writing, deceptively deep gameplay, and is wholly satisfying to play. DrinkBox studios has made an action game of extremely high caliber, and revives a genre that many gamers grew up with.

As with food, video games are all about the freshness of the ingredients and the care taken in preparation and presentation. And when everything is just right, the result can be something like Guacamelee!

True to its fanciful food title, Guacamelee serves up a saucy mix of eclectic influences in a fresh take on a classic dish. While there’s always the risk of sampling too many flavors, the end result is a delightfully diverse game that successfully showcases a different side of itself at every taste.

Even with its platforming frustrations, Guacamelee is an excellent addition to the genre, retaining important classic elements and introducing several fresh additions. The main campaign took me around seven hours (with a decent amount of secret-searching). The pacing is just right, sending you from one adventure to the next without any bloated, boring spots.

The responsive controls and a grin-inducing sense of humor make it near impossible to put down, and the expressive use of color will warm the hearts of even the most cynical among us.

Guacamelee! is a rich, fun, free-scrolling action platformer with a fantastic fighting engine, some truly tricky platforming challenges, and a vibrant style all its own.

Despite some frustrating moments and difficulty spikes, it’s a terrific game for PlayStation Network gamers looking for something both familiar and different.

The team at Drinkbox has studied the greats, but they've forged their own path with a consistent, engaging art style, and meticulously perfected controls and level design. This passion for Drinkbox’s influences has produced more than homage; Guacamelee is remarkable on its own.

Right from the start, Guacamelee! offers up a sugar skull-covered playground to delight in and devour with mucho gusto. It's a game I'll be playing and replaying again for some time to come.

Guacamelee is a fantastic, albeit slightly short experience for PS3 and Vita owners. I cannot recommend it enough for anyone who has either system. If you have both, the cross-save/buy mechanic makes it an even greater value being able to take the experience wherever you go. I only wish it would have lasted longer, but for the price there is more than enough here to love.

Few games have felt as smooth to control and fun to play through as Drinkbox Studios’ latest and greatest hit, and if the upward climb from Tales from Space to this title is any indication, the company’s next efforts should be something to look forward to with baited breath.

Guacamelee isn’t only pretty to look at, it’s also a hell of a lot of fun to play. Its Metroidvania inspiration is undoubtedly strong, and yet it does so much to help it stand apart, not the least of which by providing gamers with a deceivingly deep combat system and a two-world polarity system that simply makes the experience more dynamic.

It’s a must for any MetroidVania-style fan, and wrestling fans who’ve never played one should use this as a gateway game into the genre.

Colorful, charming, challenging and full of humor: Guacamelee celebrates classic exploration, fighting and jump&run on the highest level.

Guacamelee! is a really fun action-platform game. A remarkable game in this genre thanks to its amazing combat system, platforms and visual style.

Guacamelee is an impressive effort from Drinkbox Studios. It's a simple, solid and well-made Metroid clone in a time when Metroid clones are nonexistent.

One of the best games to come to PSN in ages, Guacamelee! is one of those rare titles that bridges the gap between the familiar and originality perfectly with some of the most vibrant and stylish graphics of the year.

An excellent game made in the best tradition of Metroid or Symphony of the Night. Great combat system, striking visuals, superb artistic direction, notable humour and a really good soundtrack. The enemies get a bit repetitive and the evolution of the combat from El Luchador could be longer, but overall, a really recommended buy.

A solid action platformer that can challenge both your reflexes and your mind is enhanced with some clever writing and a bold art style.

I still had fun in those first couple hours, and a 4 hour campaign isn’t a terrible thing in and of itself (Journey was 3 hours), but just as I got into a groove with Guacamelee! and was having an absolute blast, it ended and left me thinking that there should have been one more world, hopefully something we see in DLC form (hint, hint DrinkBox!).

Guacamelee is easily one of the best titles available on the PlayStation Network. It has a great mix of action and exploration with rock-solid gameplay to back it all up. The adventure is a little on the short side, but it begs to be played again and again. Plus, things get even more enjoyable when you take a long a friend on the PS3. Definitely check this one out!

Unique, stylish and effortlessly charming. [July 2013, p.77]

Guacamelee! is a relatively brief undertaking; attaining 100% completion is possible in less than eight hours, and the cooperative scenarios don't do much to supplement such unbecoming abbreviation. Yet the game is so pure and so unique, a beautifully realized agricultor-to-campeón parable, that it still stands as a must-play for anyone with even the paltriest appreciation for the medium.

It’s not the best 2D adventure to be found on PlayStation systems, but it’s a wonderful example of Sony’s dedication to bringing new and independent experiences to the hands of its gamers.

While at first it seems like Guacamelee! mocks Mexican culture, the truth is that the game doesn't take itself seriously. With brilliant platforming sections and a cohesive and original art direction, the game presents an interesting and original world. The combat is not as deep as we would like it to be, but this frisky title has a hard to find feature: uniqueness.

DrinkBox Studios moves away from alien blobs and attempts to reinvigorate the classic MetroidVania concept, but with Luchadores, pop culture references and an immense amount of humor. With a insanely complex melee mechanic, well-crafted platforming and a clear understanding of the concept at hand, Guacamelee! manages to wrestle to the top of the food chain.

It may not reinvent the wheel, but Guacamelee! leaves you satisfied that you’ve experienced a game crafted by a talented studio with a genuine love for what they do.

A ridiculously fun action platformer with Mexico as a colorful backdrop. This indie adventure in 2D may be simple, but it successfully combines an engaging combat system with some very entertaining platform challenges.

Remove its witty jokes, countless fun references and memes, and Guacamelee! is still a game more than worth playing. The 'Metroid-vania'-style works well, action and agility complement each other greatly and the challenge is amazingly balanced. Too bad that the cooperative mode just isn't up to standards.

The heart that went into developing Guacamelee! is evident in its execution and reverence to other works.

Absolute brilliance that falls just short of perfection. Guacamelee! is the best Metroidvania since Cave Story.

Behind the lucha libre galore there's a solid action-game, with polished core mechanics, stunning visuals and a beautiful “old school” feeling. Lacking the perfection and the sense of loneliness of Super Metroid, Gaucamelee! may be too easy for a seasoned gamer. Beside that, it's fun and addictive.

Guacamelee! is a fiery adventure for fans of platformers with a bit of a kick. While the level design can be a bit finicky, it's the combat that's the real star of the show, making us wish that there was a little more of it. Still, the title may not be flawless, but it's entirely deserving of its place upon the great gaming menu, alongside the classics that so clearly inspired it.

The clumsy evolution of combat aside, I'd heartily recommend Guacamelee – once for its devilish difficulty, again for its luchadorable charm, and one last time for its even-handed treatment of the lowly video game chicken.

Metroid and Castelvania face a new challenger, as the bizarre world of Mexican wrestling inspires one of the most entertaining action adventures of recent years.

With such a beautiful and distinct art style of its own, a world ripe for exploration and satisfying brawler combat that is unique among its peers, Guacamelee has as much to teach future games as it has learned from the greats.

It's short, sure, but it also doesn't wear out its welcome, focusing solely on the necessary pieces of an adventure that's often as challenging as it is thrilling. In Guacamelee!, DrinkBox has both provided a wonderfully crafted action game for old school and new players alike, and established itself as a developer very much worth paying attention to.

It economically packs its enjoyment into a few hours and, more importantly for the home consumer, it costs just a few dollars. It’s a game completely free of the bloated trappings that weigh down many a decent idea.

It’s a solid formula, of course, and like its wrestler star Drinkbox’s game is dressed up luridly and with flair – but this entertaining romp is more about the costume than what’s beneath it.

Guacamelee has real heart and a blazing desire to put on a good show.