MFGG - Mario Fan Games Galaxy

Review Information

Game Reviewed	Mario Tails (Flappy Bird Clone), by IAmGreenMike
Review Author	Willsaber
Created	Sep 16 2015, 3:52 AM

General Commentary and Game Overview

Mario Tails (Flappy Bid Clone) is, well, an attempt at a Flappy Bird clone. The game is rather simple, and while it does have some interesting ideas, it is a rather mind-numbing game that, due to the lack of variety, won't consume for than a few minutes of your day. If you have mastery over Flappy Bird game mechanics, you may enjoy this game for what it is worth, but otherwise, I would not recommend it.

Pros	- The game alternates between familiar settings
Cons	- Ugly jump sound effect plays when you start the game - Punishing gameplay - Lack of detail in the environments - Overly simple game design

Impressions

Gameplay 2 / 10	I never really played Flappy Bird, but I have a general idea of what it is and looks like. As far as the pacing and level design goes, it appears at least reminiscent of the original game, so I assume the developer, IAmGreenMike, did an adequate job of accomplishing his goal. However, the game design is severely flawed. After several play-throughs of the game, I noticed that the controls, in coordination with the cramped level design, is very punishing. If you make one too many jumps, you will fail. I can understand the need for such conventional difficulty after the player has had some success in a run, but the game becomes difficult right after you approach the first pipe. Upon colliding with a vertical obstacle, you will immediately be forced back to the beginning of the level. One hit, that's it. Punishing the player so harshly for small mistakes is very inappropriate game design for an endless minigame, as it fails to encourage the player to continue playing. I have not encountered any enemies or obstacles other than the pipes, which did disappoint me. Even though any additional threatening obstacles would have made the game nigh-impossible to play, the same level of difficulty could have been retained by making the level design easier, but counter-balancing with the addition of variety in obstacles. It's a side-scrolling rail survival game, so you have no horizontal control. Instead, you work against gravity by jumping mid-air to lift your avatar further into the air, and having him lowered through in-action. This is an interesting concept, but it feels like the player doesn't really have any control, or at least very little, over the playable avatar.
Graphics 4 / 10	The graphics are more or less... okay. You've got a BiS Raccoon Mario edit, SM:AS pipes, and SM:AS backgrounds. The graphics don't look terrible next to each other, per say, but there is a clear lack of continuity between the art styles. It's rather minimalist, so there isn't a whole lot to say about what exists. However, there is a great lack of eye candy. The environments are extremely bare-bones, with basic backdrops and tiles. It's clear there was very little effort and attention to detail to the world building, which is a great shame, as when gameplay is not immersive enough to pull a player in, the world-building is what the game falls upon (and sometimes the other way around).
Sound 4 / 10	Once you start a run, you immediately hear a rather annoying jump sound effect. The rest of the sounds aren't terrible, but there isn't a whole lot of artistic liberty here. Much like the graphics, the only sounds to be found are those which absolutely MUST be implemented. What exists isn't spectacular, and it can't be given an A for effort.
Replay 1 / 10	Ehhh, there is nothing special about this game. It's extremely forgettable, and given how it lacks any true merits or signs of excellence, you are not likely to have the need to play this game again. Especially given how many other games with virtually identical gameplay, but much better world building, exist.

Final Words

I found that when writing my notes for this review, there was not a whole lot to actually talk about. The game makes use of one button, the sounds and art are as bare-bones as possible, and the gameplay isn't all that spectacular. You should just give it a pass.

Report This Submission

Comments

No comments have been left.

Pages: | Last Unread