Reviewed on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo 3DS and Wii U
→ June 8, 2014Are you impatient? Easily frustrated? 1001 Spikes is not for you. An uncompromisingly difficult throwback to 8-bit platformers, 1001 Spikes looks like an NES game and feels like being repeatedly kicked in the teeth. As Indiana Jones-alike Aban Hawkins, you've got 1,001 lives to spend delving through an ancient, trap-filled temple – and you'll likely need every last one of them (and more) if you plan to make it to the end. It's a trip worth taking, as the retro aesthetic hides a huge assortment of inventive challenges made more fun and interesting by the precision it takes to overcome them – but it's a brutal one.
Death comes quickly and frequently, often from places that looked safe seconds before; you might finally make it past a seemingly impassable gauntlet of spike traps and dart-blowing statues after 50 attempts, for example, only to be crushed by a surprise falling block just inches from the exit. 1001 Spikes loves to play tricks like that – and it has no mid-level checkpoints, so slip-ups get you thrown back to the start to attempt all their challenges again. And forget about relying on past experience to get you through new obstacles, because each level is a uniquely shaped gem of absurd difficulty, each hidden trap has a distinct behavior, and some challenges can take hundreds of attempts to squeeze past successfully.
For all its toughness, however, 1001 Spikes' clever design – which forced me to continually re-think my approach while keeping victory tantalizingly just out of reach – always kept me going for just one more try. (Actually, dozens of tries.) In each level, I experienced three distinct phases: Immediate dread at the sight of corridors lined with rolling boulders, leaping scorpions, or spinning blades; death-filled experimentation as I found a path through them; and endless repetition of the same carefully timed leaps, high jumps, and knife throws so that I could repeat phases one and two while dealing with whatever fresh hell waited in the next part of the level.
Things that seemed impossible at first became routine and encoded into muscle memory after 10 or so deaths, and it rarely took very long to figure out what I needed to do. Nailing the timing and precision needed to actually do it was an uphill battle, of course, but part of what makes 1001 Spikes so addictive is that once a solution becomes clear, finishing the level becomes irresistible – and if you can pull it off, it's because you mastered that thing. You own it. And for me, the palpable sense of accomplishment and relief that came with actually completing a level was always enough to make me push ahead into the next one. As a helpful talking mouse at the beginning says, "the harder the journey, the greater the joy of success."
If you're especially frustrated with a given level, 1001 Spikes has a very non-old-school feature: you can elect to simply skip ahead to the next one. This may seem self-defeating, but the feature is clearly meant for beginners, with the catch being that skipping levels locks off the final stages of the Ukampa Temple – and, in turn, the entire second half of the campaign, during which the level-skip feature is disabled. Only by going back and repeating the unfinished levels can you hope to forge ahead; fortunately, you can freely revisit them from the world map.
There's more to 1001 Spikes than the 61 brilliantly grueling levels in its story mode – which, by the way, can be played in co-op with a friend. It’s something that doesn't necessarily make them any easier, but does make them more fun. Collecting the gold skulls hidden in each level unlocks a host of bonuses, including new playable characters assembled from other indie games. Using them lets you take advantage of new abilities — Tempura of the Dead's President Thompson has a double-jump and a submachine gun, for example, while Aban's sister Tina can cling to walls — but they each have to start a separate campaign from the beginning, which limits their campaign usefulness to making repeat playthroughs more interesting. They're great in the arcade modes, though, which let up to four (local-only) players compete to collect coins (which can buy even more extras from an unlockable shop). The first mode, a chaotic, Smash Bros.-style smack-'em-up called The Golden Vase, lets players compete to beat coins out of the titular magic urn, is open from the start, and it's fun for a few minutes at a stretch. The unlockable modes – "The Tower of Nannar" and "The Lost Levels" – are a bit more interesting, delivering mini-campaigns with new levels that are perfectly playable solo, but more enjoyable with friends along.
PlayStation 4 Version
The PS4 and Vita versions are sold on PSN as a package deal, meaning they're arguably the best deal if you have access to both platforms. The PS4 version is identical to the PC and Wii U versions, with a couple of exceptions: it plays sounds through the controller’s speaker, and it includes a Nathan Drake-inspired Adventure Aban skin for the arcade modes, which lets him cling to ledges and shoot a pistol. The skin is unlocked from the start, alongside the clear homages to Castlevania's Simon Belmont and Ghosts 'n' Goblins' Sir Arthur found in other versions.
PlayStation Vita Version
The Vita version lacks any multiplayer features and cuts The Golden Vase mode entirely (slightly disappointing, as it's useful for farming lots of coins in a hurry, but understandable). What remains plays identically to the other versions, features the PS4’s Adventure Aban skin, and looks vibrant on the handheld's screen.
Wii U Version
Not to be outdone by the PS4 version, the Wii U edition comes with its own custom arcade-mode skin for Aban: the Mario-inspired Mr. Video Game, which comes complete with appropriate music and a fireball attack.
3DS version
The 3DS version is easily the weakest of the bunch; not only does it lack multiplayer and The Golden Vase, but the smaller screen makes it tougher to spot some of the deadlier features camouflaged throughout 1001 Spikes' levels (and for the record, I played on a 3DS XL). Turning on 3D is a little disorienting, and even when it's off, the animation gets visibly (and shockingly) choppy when levels scroll. It's otherwise the same as the other versions and includes the Mr. Video Game skin, but it’s not an ideal way to play.
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→ June 8, 2014Are you impatient? Easily frustrated? 1001 Spikes is not for you. An uncompromisingly difficult throwback to 8-bit platformers, 1001 Spikes looks like an NES game and feels like being repeatedly kicked in the teeth. As Indiana Jones-alike Aban Hawkins, you've got 1,001 lives to spend delving through an ancient, trap-filled temple – and you'll likely need every last one of them (and more) if you plan to make it to the end. It's a trip worth taking, as the retro aesthetic hides a huge assortment of inventive challenges made more fun and interesting by the precision it takes to overcome them – but it's a brutal one.
Death comes quickly and frequently, often from places that looked safe seconds before; you might finally make it past a seemingly impassable gauntlet of spike traps and dart-blowing statues after 50 attempts, for example, only to be crushed by a surprise falling block just inches from the exit. 1001 Spikes loves to play tricks like that – and it has no mid-level checkpoints, so slip-ups get you thrown back to the start to attempt all their challenges again. And forget about relying on past experience to get you through new obstacles, because each level is a uniquely shaped gem of absurd difficulty, each hidden trap has a distinct behavior, and some challenges can take hundreds of attempts to squeeze past successfully.
For all its toughness, however, 1001 Spikes' clever design – which forced me to continually re-think my approach while keeping victory tantalizingly just out of reach – always kept me going for just one more try. (Actually, dozens of tries.) In each level, I experienced three distinct phases: Immediate dread at the sight of corridors lined with rolling boulders, leaping scorpions, or spinning blades; death-filled experimentation as I found a path through them; and endless repetition of the same carefully timed leaps, high jumps, and knife throws so that I could repeat phases one and two while dealing with whatever fresh hell waited in the next part of the level.
Things that seemed impossible at first became routine and encoded into muscle memory after 10 or so deaths, and it rarely took very long to figure out what I needed to do. Nailing the timing and precision needed to actually do it was an uphill battle, of course, but part of what makes 1001 Spikes so addictive is that once a solution becomes clear, finishing the level becomes irresistible – and if you can pull it off, it's because you mastered that thing. You own it. And for me, the palpable sense of accomplishment and relief that came with actually completing a level was always enough to make me push ahead into the next one. As a helpful talking mouse at the beginning says, "the harder the journey, the greater the joy of success."
If you're especially frustrated with a given level, 1001 Spikes has a very non-old-school feature: you can elect to simply skip ahead to the next one. This may seem self-defeating, but the feature is clearly meant for beginners, with the catch being that skipping levels locks off the final stages of the Ukampa Temple – and, in turn, the entire second half of the campaign, during which the level-skip feature is disabled. Only by going back and repeating the unfinished levels can you hope to forge ahead; fortunately, you can freely revisit them from the world map.
There's more to 1001 Spikes than the 61 brilliantly grueling levels in its story mode – which, by the way, can be played in co-op with a friend. It’s something that doesn't necessarily make them any easier, but does make them more fun. Collecting the gold skulls hidden in each level unlocks a host of bonuses, including new playable characters assembled from other indie games. Using them lets you take advantage of new abilities — Tempura of the Dead's President Thompson has a double-jump and a submachine gun, for example, while Aban's sister Tina can cling to walls — but they each have to start a separate campaign from the beginning, which limits their campaign usefulness to making repeat playthroughs more interesting. They're great in the arcade modes, though, which let up to four (local-only) players compete to collect coins (which can buy even more extras from an unlockable shop). The first mode, a chaotic, Smash Bros.-style smack-'em-up called The Golden Vase, lets players compete to beat coins out of the titular magic urn, is open from the start, and it's fun for a few minutes at a stretch. The unlockable modes – "The Tower of Nannar" and "The Lost Levels" – are a bit more interesting, delivering mini-campaigns with new levels that are perfectly playable solo, but more enjoyable with friends along.
PlayStation 4 Version
The PS4 and Vita versions are sold on PSN as a package deal, meaning they're arguably the best deal if you have access to both platforms. The PS4 version is identical to the PC and Wii U versions, with a couple of exceptions: it plays sounds through the controller’s speaker, and it includes a Nathan Drake-inspired Adventure Aban skin for the arcade modes, which lets him cling to ledges and shoot a pistol. The skin is unlocked from the start, alongside the clear homages to Castlevania's Simon Belmont and Ghosts 'n' Goblins' Sir Arthur found in other versions.
PlayStation Vita Version
The Vita version lacks any multiplayer features and cuts The Golden Vase mode entirely (slightly disappointing, as it's useful for farming lots of coins in a hurry, but understandable). What remains plays identically to the other versions, features the PS4’s Adventure Aban skin, and looks vibrant on the handheld's screen.
Wii U Version
Not to be outdone by the PS4 version, the Wii U edition comes with its own custom arcade-mode skin for Aban: the Mario-inspired Mr. Video Game, which comes complete with appropriate music and a fireball attack.
3DS version
The 3DS version is easily the weakest of the bunch; not only does it lack multiplayer and The Golden Vase, but the smaller screen makes it tougher to spot some of the deadlier features camouflaged throughout 1001 Spikes' levels (and for the record, I played on a 3DS XL). Turning on 3D is a little disorienting, and even when it's off, the animation gets visibly (and shockingly) choppy when levels scroll. It's otherwise the same as the other versions and includes the Mr. Video Game skin, but it’s not an ideal way to play.
More...
