[E3 2017] “Knack II” Hands-On

Despite it being a punchline to all sorts of people in the gaming meme community, Knack II is shaping up to be a really enjoyable game.

We got our hands on the game at E3 where it surprisingly didn’t require logging into the buggy PlayStation Experience app.

The big thing with this sequel to the popular launch title is that it can be played completely in co-op mode for the entire game, which can obviously make the game easier or harder depending on the combined skill of both players.

The level we played was near the beginning of the game and was a good sort of tutorial to the game’s mechanics.  The controls are pretty much the same as they were in the first Knack–typical platforming controls with the ability to shrink with R1 to fit in small places, and R1 again to go back to your big self.  The level was really all about testing your platforming ability, which felt good.

Of course, mistakes can be made that lead to death, and if there’s one player who made it through the obstacles, anybody can press R2 at any time to warp to where the other player is, which is awesome when you don’t make a certain block.

Knack II will be out on September 5, and we’ll have a review around then.

Title:
Knack II
Platform:
PlayStation 4
Publisher:
Sony Interactive Entertainment
Developer:
Japan Studio
Genre:
Adventure
Release Date:
September 5, 2017
ESRB Rating:
E10+

Despite it being a punchline to all sorts of people in the gaming meme community, Knack II is shaping up to be a really enjoyable game. We got our hands on the game at E3 where it surprisingly didn’t require…

Despite it being a punchline to all sorts of people in the gaming meme community, Knack II is shaping up to be a really enjoyable game.

We got our hands on the game at E3 where it surprisingly didn’t require logging into the buggy PlayStation Experience app.

The big thing with this sequel to the popular launch title is that it can be played completely in co-op mode for the entire game, which can obviously make the game easier or harder depending on the combined skill of both players.

The level we played was near the beginning of the game and was a good sort of tutorial to the game’s mechanics.  The controls are pretty much the same as they were in the first Knack–typical platforming controls with the ability to shrink with R1 to fit in small places, and R1 again to go back to your big self.  The level was really all about testing your platforming ability, which felt good.

Of course, mistakes can be made that lead to death, and if there’s one player who made it through the obstacles, anybody can press R2 at any time to warp to where the other player is, which is awesome when you don’t make a certain block.

Knack II will be out on September 5, and we’ll have a review around then.

Date published: 06/16/2017
/ 5 stars