Developer Weird Beluga and publisher Fireshine Games are channeling the colorful 3D platformers of old in Duskfade, a title that blends the whimsical vibe of games like The Legend of Zelda and the original Jak and Daxter with a surprisingly somber story of family, grief, and making every second count. Its initial demo was launched on Steam last September, and now curious players can dive into the full world of Tearfeld – a realm where magic and clockwork go hand-in-hand.
The story goes that a sinister Clock Tower has plunged Tearfeld into an endless night, and it is up to a young hero named Zirian to rescue his sister Allira and save the world. Armed with a mystical sword forged by his late grandfather and assisted by the spunky and sarcastic mechanical bird Cuckoo, Zirian must journey across many different environments and break the golden chains that keep the Clock Tower locked tight. Along the way, these unlikely heroes cross paths with Despair, a masked figure who wants to use the Tower’s magic for her own mysterious purposes.
Key Details
- Developer: Weird Beluga
- Publisher: Fireshine Games
- Platform: Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Steam, Xbox Series X/S
- Price: $29.99
- Review Code Provided: Yes, For Steam
Enter A Realm Of Time And Magic
The game begins in the central hub of Tick Town, which is populated by cloud-like creatures named Cloudies – and where the Clock Tower looms over all. From here, Zirian and Cuckoo can interact with the townspeople, purchase upgrades and cosmetic items, and follow the Tower’s chains to their next destination. Duskfade‘s controls will feel immediately familiar to anyone who’s played a PS2-era 3D platformer: you move with the control stick, jump, dodge, and perform light and heavy attacks with the buttons, lock onto enemies with one of the triggers, and activate special abilities and use healing potions with the bumpers.
Enemies run the full gamut from smaller shadow-like creatures to larger bosses, with special types including those who toss little energy blasts that can be deflected back with a well-timed swing of Zirian’s sword, leave exploding barrels when they die, or even cast a spell that temporarily inverts the player’s movement. Health is indicated by the green, clock-like meter in the right-hand corner of the screen, and running out completely requires you to start over from the most recent checkpoint.
These checkpoints take the shape of golden grandfather clocks that save your progress and restore your health when you stand near them. There are also “guidebells,” which show you where you need to go if you hit them, as well as teleporters that can get you back to Tick Town or another location without having to waste time backtracking.
Time To Learn Some New Tricks
As the game goes on, Zirian will collect new powers for his sword, such as the explosive Chronoblast, Stopwatch (which can make you invulnerable for a brief time), Timebomb (a landmine that can either be used to clear enemies or launch you great distances), and Starfall (which shoots a meteor shower that spreads across the battlefield and damages enemies). Using these abilities requires spending a Temporal Energy gauge that is recharged by performing regular attacks.
There are also gadgets like the Grappling Hook (which can be used to swing across chasms after being fired at a grappling point), the Pendulum (which can smash through stronger crystals with heavier blows), the Sundial (which lets you grind on rails), and the Wings (which let you glide short distances). Just like with your regular attacks, these can be upgraded by collecting Star Shards and Gears.
There are also plenty of other collectibles to be gathered, either by finding them floating about the world or by opening treasure chests. Star-shaped healing potions can be used to regenerate health, Star Fragments can increase Zirian’s total Temporal Energy, and Clock Fragments can boost his maximum health meter. You will also uncover Echoes, conversations from lost Cloudies that build on the lore of Tearfeld, and music boxes that require you to complete a Simon Says-style sound-matching minigame.
An Adventure For All Time
Visually, Duskfade’s colorful worlds and cartoonish characters have plenty of charm, harkening back to titles like Kingdom Hearts or Spyro the Dragon through quirky humor and a colorful fantasy world. The in-game environments are varied and include volcanic mountains, ancient sunken libraries, and vast deserts. Duskfade’s voice acting and music are also solid, though most of the game’s dialogue is text-only. Nonetheless, characters like Cuckoo and Despair are well written and performed, and the in-game cutscenes do a great job in conveying the story’s emotional beats.
Final Score – 9/10
As was the case with the classic platformers Duskfade draws its main inspiration from, there are times when you might get confused about where to go or frustrated with a tricky segment (especially towards the end), but the game is a pretty fun nod to the PlayStation 2 era all the same. If you have fond memories of playing through those old platformers, Duskfade is a tribute that I would recommend setting aside some time for – though be warned that you might get a little choked up by the time the credits roll.
**Bonus Action was provided with a Steam Code of Duskfade for the purpose of this review**
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