Clowning around in the cirque du slaughter
This frantic platformer bears comparison to some of the indie greats of recent years. In terms of core mechanics, Dutch developer Self Made Miracle has taken its cues from arcade gem Super Crate Box, recreating that game’s compulsive blend of speedy 2D traversal and panicky high-score chasing, and in multiplayer, it evokes the pace and tension of a heated Towerfall tournament. Those are some lofty comparisons, to be sure, but it almost stands shoulder to shoulder with these 2D titans. Almost.
The game’s single-player campaign kicks off with our youthful protagonist abducted by a vaudevillian villain and forced to perform in a sadistic circus for bloodthirsty punters. The game’s brutal big top is home to all manner of traps and weapons, you see, and the crowd’s paid good money to watch you stand up to an onslaught of rocket launchers, Gatling guns, and water cannons.
But seeing as you’re a fragile wee thing with no offensive abilities to speak of, your only option is to embrace the creeping sense of panic as you double-jump your way past the hail of bullets and bombs. It’s a fine introduction to the mechanics of the game, but Penarium’s campaign mode is really a sort of extended tutorial, providing 30 stages of basic training interspersed with occasional flashes of inspired gimmickry.
The main event of this variegated game is the arcade mode, which challenges you to nab as many collectable barrels as possible before succumbing to the onslaught. Grab one, and another will appear somewhere else in the arena, forcing you to frequently abandon safe spaces in pursuit of high-scores. What’s more, for every five barrels you collect, the level’s traps and armaments will rearrange themselves, ensuring that no single strategy will endure for more than 30 seconds or so.
At one moment you might be dodging heat-seeking missiles from the top of the screen while sharpened icicles spring from the bottom. The next, you’ll be fleeing from bouncing bowling balls and rising water. One or two less-than-stellar obstacles dampen the excitement now and then, but Penarium is reliably unpredictable, rambunctious fun. A selection of power-ups add even more chaos into the mix, offering temporary advantages such as increased speed or mobility, as well as other, more exotic bonuses, including the ability to jump on clouds or simply fly around the level.
Penarium’s brand of twitchy intensity is at its best in the two-man multiplayer modes. Co-op implements smart tweaks to the core arcade experience, demanding coordination, timing, and teamwork rather than sheer dexterity. It is, as you’d expect, a recipe for arguments. The competitive mode, meanwhile, is a simple but uproarious experience, enlivened considerably by the ability to stun your adversary with a bounce on the bonce, leaving them at the mercy of some deadly trap or other.
Penarium can’t quite boast the balance and depth of Super Crate Box or Towerfall, and it lacks the longevity of other arcade arenas, but this circus puts on a spectacular show nonetheless – one well worth the price of admission.
A fast-paced test of nerve and skill, Penarium offers all the fun of the fair in single- or multiplayer.