CrossCode

In short, Radical Fish Games has raised the bar for retro-inspired indie games. You owe it to yourself to uncover the secrets Shadoon and CrossWorlds with Lea and friends in CrossCode.

After a long period of development, this may be one of the breakout indie titles of the year.

Players (fake ones, that is) constantly stream in and out of areas, mimicking and perhaps, even making fun of the lifeless bustle of MMO games. NPCs dole out meaningless quests to the amusement of some characters, who’ll point out its farcicality. Enemies, who appear in the form of adorable creatures like bunnies and cows, respawn after you make brutally clean work of them. There are even enough esoteric jokes to delight those familiar with the genre. In short, CrossCode is a fun jaunt, developed with seasoned players of RPGs in mind — a truly great game you could devote 117 hours to.

Fast, fluid, and effortlessly cool, CrossCode is a modern classic and a fantastic throwback to one of gaming golden ages.

CrossCode is an outstanding title that is completely worth your time investment. It is beautiful, compelling and a ton of fun.

A cheeky 16-bit RPG game disguised as an MMO that holds your attention throughout the dozens of hours of gameplay and challenging puzzles.

The music is reminiscent of all the 1990s SNES games I loved as a kid, the pixelated art style is well-done and great to look at, and the game feels exactly how I want a 2D top-down RPG to feel in 2020. It takes cues from games like A Link to the Past while updating the gameplay for modern audiences and controllers, all without losing its artistic charm and still paying tribute to beloved retro titles.

CrossCode may not be the most original game on the market in its quest to emulate SNES classics. However, it innovates in ways that feel natural.

CrossCode is an RPG that demands your full attention at every turn. Whether it’s solving puzzles, completing quests or surviving the many battles, you need to be on your toes. Honestly, it’s exhausting. But I don’t mind the strain. Indeed, I’d rather more RPGs pushed me in this fashion. Perhaps it’s just the focus on puzzles that permeates every level of this game, but I had to work for every victory. That only made said victories all the sweeter, however.

On the other hand, if you can push all that story into the background and focus on the sheer thrill of the game’s combat and the challenge of its puzzles, it has a lot more going for it. CrossCode puts its mechanics to good use in inventive ways, and at times, I found it to be legitimately impressive. However, without the beating heart of a convincing narrative, you may find yourself logging out too soon.

CrossCode is an ambitious game, but its myriad parts lack cohesion.

Verdict: I’m not sure how this slid under the radar so hard but make no mistake, CrossCode should have been a serious 2018 game of the year candidate. Radical Fish Games have effectively showcased a model development cycle by listening to consumer feedback, interacting with their community and releasing an outstanding title. Minor flaws aside, CrossCode is a special game that is completely worth your time and money. The developers should be proud of what they have made.