Ever since the release of the Nintendo 64 in 1996, 3D action-adventure games have evolved into one of the most evergreen gaming experiences of all time. Who doesn’t love diving into a vibrant world full of places to explore and secrets to find while on a journey to destroy the “big bad” of the story? Games like The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, A Hat in Time, and Banjo-Kazooie stand as just a few of the most enthralling examples of such games.
Imagine my surprise when I got word of Demon Tides, an indie game that intends to recapture that same feeling of thrilling exploration and vibrant world-hopping that those aforementioned games offer. Yeah, it was a no-brainer to dive into this game to see if it hits the mark. And let me tell you, it absolutely does.
Before even starting the game, the visual style hooked me as soon as the title screen popped up. The cel-shaded graphics make the world of Demon Tides look like a cartoonishly fun world to explore. The colors are vibrant, the characters are expressive, and everything is just so nice to look at.
One thing that does get a bit in the way of appreciating the visual style are some minor bugs related to the player model. In my playthrough, I noticed Beebz’s arms would sometimes clip through their outfit, which made some cutscenes look a bit strange. It’s a small detail, but one that is visible just enough to make me notice it.
Another thing I encountered that affected the overall experience was the camera. There were dozens of times where I was attempting some tight platforming segments, only to have my vision completely obscured by the camera clipping into the wall. To a lesser extent, I also had the camera clip inside of NPC’s when talking to them, which was a little frustrating. 3D camera controls have certainly come a long way since Super Mario 64, but it feels like Demon Tides might have leaned a bit too hard on nostalgia and unintentionally emulated the camera controls from 3D platformers of old.
However, another visual issue I encountered that was far more noticeable was the pop-in for all the islands you travel to. I’ve found myself casually barreling through the ocean, only to suddenly be met with a structure that hasn’t completely loaded in. I could be more understanding if this was related to playing on lower-spec hardware, but my PC isn’t exactly low-spec, so it certainly caught me off guard.
From a distance, it’s somewhat obscured by fog.When you’re basically right in front of it, the rest of it pops in!
Getting into the core of the game, Demon Tides is best described as a mix between Wind Waker and A Hat in Time when it comes to world design and mission structure. You play as Beebz, a little demon queen who was invited to meet with Ragnar, who is the King of the archipelago area you explore. Upon crashing into the islands, you’re tasked with exploring the nearby islands to uncover why you were invited to Ragnar’s kingdom, and why he did so while remaining in his castle floating in the sky. A floating castle does not make for an easy commute, to be frank.
Beebz is a Lokian, a species that is capable of transforming into different forms which help with traversal across the seas and through the air. The snake form is useful for skidding across the ocean to reach various islands, as well as competing in races. The bat form, meanwhile, comes out when trying to close gaps when making your way through various platforming challenges.
In addition to the demon forms, Beebz’s movement is very fluid overall. Demon Tides has movement mechanics akin to A Hat in Time and Bowser’s Fury, where chaining together moves like double-jumping and dives can make traversal faster than just taking a stroll across the islands. While I did fall off many platforms trying to string together movement combos to look cool, doing so throughout my adventure was very enjoyable.
In addition to the base movement mechanics, there are also plenty of adjustments you can make to Beebz in the form of badges. By purchasing them from Midgi’s shop, Beebz can equip a handful of badges that range from increasing movement speed on water to giving you extra air time when floating with the bat form. You can also have separate loadouts, which is a nice touch as it allowed me to save a loadout for exploring the ocean and for platforming.
The game’s world was already fun to traverse, but Demon Tides understood the assignment of having expressive characters breathing life into the islands. The crew you travel with all have an entertaining friendship with Beebz, making the game feel like a group of close friends on a chaotic sea-faring journey together. You have Luci who is Beebz’s best friend and hype (wo)man that also sells outfits for Beebz to wear on her adventures. Then there’s Midgi, a nerdy gearhead that gets really into making badges that improve Beebz’s abilities on the open sea. Finally, we have DK who is Gen Z to the core, saying things like “Pog” and “rizz.” As a Gen Z myself, it is hilariously unsettling to see an NPC in a game speak like this.
Throughout the world, you’ll also encounter other Lokians who are surviving the aftermath of Ragnar’s tyranny. Even in the worst of times, the citizens of the islands still make do with the hand they are dealt, and are often fun to talk to. I had to stop myself from screenshotting all the text boxes because the dialogue had me smiling the whole time.
Demon Tides is another example of how good tributes to older games can be, this time in the 3D action-adventure space. While the graphical fidelity is a little rough around the edges at times, the core game is a vibrant, sea-hopping adventure that I can’t get enough of. I absolutely love exploring every inch of the sea and bouncing my way through all kinds of platforming challenges. If you are someone that enjoys games like A Hat in Time or Bowser’s Fury, I can’t recommend this game enough.
Imagine my surprise when I got word of Demon Tides, an indie game that intends to recapture that same feeling of thrilling exploration and vibrant world-hopping that Wind Waker and A Hat in Time did. Yeah, it was a no-brainer to dive into this game to see if it hits the mark. And let me tell you, it absolutely does.
Ever since the release of the Nintendo 64 in 1996, 3D action-adventure games have evolved into one of the most evergreen gaming experiences of all time. Who doesn’t love diving into a vibrant world full of places to explore and secrets to find while on a journey to destroy the “big bad” of the story? Games like The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, A Hat in Time, and Banjo-Kazooie stand as just a few of the most enthralling examples of such games.
Imagine my surprise when I got word of Demon Tides, an indie game that intends to recapture that same feeling of thrilling exploration and vibrant world-hopping that those aforementioned games offer. Yeah, it was a no-brainer to dive into this game to see if it hits the mark. And let me tell you, it absolutely does.
Before even starting the game, the visual style hooked me as soon as the title screen popped up. The cel-shaded graphics make the world of Demon Tides look like a cartoonishly fun world to explore. The colors are vibrant, the characters are expressive, and everything is just so nice to look at.
One thing that does get a bit in the way of appreciating the visual style are some minor bugs related to the player model. In my playthrough, I noticed Beebz’s arms would sometimes clip through their outfit, which made some cutscenes look a bit strange. It’s a small detail, but one that is visible just enough to make me notice it.
Another thing I encountered that affected the overall experience was the camera. There were dozens of times where I was attempting some tight platforming segments, only to have my vision completely obscured by the camera clipping into the wall. To a lesser extent, I also had the camera clip inside of NPC’s when talking to them, which was a little frustrating. 3D camera controls have certainly come a long way since Super Mario 64, but it feels like Demon Tides might have leaned a bit too hard on nostalgia and unintentionally emulated the camera controls from 3D platformers of old.
However, another visual issue I encountered that was far more noticeable was the pop-in for all the islands you travel to. I’ve found myself casually barreling through the ocean, only to suddenly be met with a structure that hasn’t completely loaded in. I could be more understanding if this was related to playing on lower-spec hardware, but my PC isn’t exactly low-spec, so it certainly caught me off guard.
From a distance, it’s somewhat obscured by fog.When you’re basically right in front of it, the rest of it pops in!
Getting into the core of the game, Demon Tides is best described as a mix between Wind Waker and A Hat in Time when it comes to world design and mission structure. You play as Beebz, a little demon queen who was invited to meet with Ragnar, who is the King of the archipelago area you explore. Upon crashing into the islands, you’re tasked with exploring the nearby islands to uncover why you were invited to Ragnar’s kingdom, and why he did so while remaining in his castle floating in the sky. A floating castle does not make for an easy commute, to be frank.
Beebz is a Lokian, a species that is capable of transforming into different forms which help with traversal across the seas and through the air. The snake form is useful for skidding across the ocean to reach various islands, as well as competing in races. The bat form, meanwhile, comes out when trying to close gaps when making your way through various platforming challenges.
In addition to the demon forms, Beebz’s movement is very fluid overall. Demon Tides has movement mechanics akin to A Hat in Time and Bowser’s Fury, where chaining together moves like double-jumping and dives can make traversal faster than just taking a stroll across the islands. While I did fall off many platforms trying to string together movement combos to look cool, doing so throughout my adventure was very enjoyable.
In addition to the base movement mechanics, there are also plenty of adjustments you can make to Beebz in the form of badges. By purchasing them from Midgi’s shop, Beebz can equip a handful of badges that range from increasing movement speed on water to giving you extra air time when floating with the bat form. You can also have separate loadouts, which is a nice touch as it allowed me to save a loadout for exploring the ocean and for platforming.
The game’s world was already fun to traverse, but Demon Tides understood the assignment of having expressive characters breathing life into the islands. The crew you travel with all have an entertaining friendship with Beebz, making the game feel like a group of close friends on a chaotic sea-faring journey together. You have Luci who is Beebz’s best friend and hype (wo)man that also sells outfits for Beebz to wear on her adventures. Then there’s Midgi, a nerdy gearhead that gets really into making badges that improve Beebz’s abilities on the open sea. Finally, we have DK who is Gen Z to the core, saying things like “Pog” and “rizz.” As a Gen Z myself, it is hilariously unsettling to see an NPC in a game speak like this.
Throughout the world, you’ll also encounter other Lokians who are surviving the aftermath of Ragnar’s tyranny. Even in the worst of times, the citizens of the islands still make do with the hand they are dealt, and are often fun to talk to. I had to stop myself from screenshotting all the text boxes because the dialogue had me smiling the whole time.
Demon Tides is another example of how good tributes to older games can be, this time in the 3D action-adventure space. While the graphical fidelity is a little rough around the edges at times, the core game is a vibrant, sea-hopping adventure that I can’t get enough of. I absolutely love exploring every inch of the sea and bouncing my way through all kinds of platforming challenges. If you are someone that enjoys games like A Hat in Time or Bowser’s Fury, I can’t recommend this game enough.
by Michael Fertitta
