Have you ever tried to imagine what the mix between a platform game and a pinball machine could be like? No. Well, the Villa Gorilla studio did it and it turns out Yoku's Island Express!
We thus find ourselves controlling Yoku, a cute little dung beetle (they are not so cute in real life!) Who carries his little ball with him. He thus arrived freshly on the island of Mokumana to take over from the current postman, already imagining the good life he was going to lead in the tropics. What he can't imagine is that his new job is not going to be easy!
Small note, it's Team 17 who publishes the game ... regulars of insects since it is they who are at the origin of Worms!
First steps
I who really like pinball games, I was obviously very intrigued by this game. The first thing that strikes you is the very colorful universe, with a rather original graphic touch (hand painted decorations). It immediately sets the tone and the desire to discover this island.
We therefore control Yoku in a fairly simple way, left-right to move it. Nothing foolish, especially since Yoku is quite slow. But we very quickly meet the "Flippers", these little levers which will allow Yoku and his ball to be sent to places otherwise inaccessible.
Click to launch GIF
Then, in some places, we discover a really traditional gameplay of the pinball machines that we know, with small game boards where the goal is to send Yoku to certain specific places to unlock the rest. Initially quite simple, these kinds of mini-games become more and more demanding, requiring dexterity and good reflexes. The fall is not extremely punitive, but it does lose fruits, collected along the way, which allow you to unlock new "pinball machines" and therefore places to explore. It is therefore very wise to keep them as much as possible under penalty of having to go looking for them.
The gameplay is still growing little by little, with the appearance of small explosive slugs, which we can "suck" and stick on the ball, so as to explode pieces of rock which block certain paths. In the end, nothing very complicated in terms of gameplay, but rather full of small ideas which, put together, give a great depth to the game.
Exploration
Exploration is a very important part of the game, because the island is vast and there is a lot to see / do. But the game being quite stingy in explanations and directives, we grope quite often, some places being inaccessible before having done certain things beforehand. We therefore find ourselves making a lot of trips back and forth on the island, which can prove to be quite frustrating and repetitive. I found myself stuck for several hours of play, not finding how to access a specific location. However, as the progression is absolutely not linear, we can find new things to do even as we seek a path for something else.
Conclusion
Yoku's Island Express is typically the kind of game you don't necessarily expect, but pleasantly surprising. The simplicity of its gameplay, far from being a disadvantage, makes it ultra accessible to all, even to the youngest (who will appreciate its graphic style all the more), while maintaining a depth that the older ones will like.
It also lends itself very well to short play sessions, the checkpoints being very numerous and it is perfect for young dads like me! So I can only recommend that you take a look at this cheap game, which is likely to occupy you for a good fifteen hours. Note that the game is available on all current platforms (Windows, PS4, Xbox One and Switch). And who knows, maybe one day on mobile?
