Few will have noticed, but this year Chibi-Robo celebrates its first ten years. The debut of the skip Ltd. robot took place on GameCube in 2005, even in 2006 in the West, therefore in a truly unfortunate period for the console, which never took off, but essentially died since 2005. With the move to handheld, Chibi-Robo! it continued to be a niche series, but managed to continue with four other titles, the last of which is its own Zip Lash.
Change gender
The series of skip Ltd. is characterized by the considerable differences in gameplay between the various chapters, although all are more or less attributable to the platform genre: while the first and third episodes were very similar, the second had numerous new features, although maintaining some basic peculiarities of the progenitor; the fourth, even, placed at the center of the gameplay a new mechanic based on Augmented Reality. We have only partially realized this heterogeneity, since they have only arrived in Europe Chibi-Robo! e Chibi-Robo! Photo Finder, the latter just a year ago.
Zip Lash is the protagonist of a new twist for the series, being a rather classic 2.5D side-scrolling platformer. This change of direction represents the developers' latest attempt to bring Chibi-Robo to success; to say it was the producer himself, Kensuke Tanabe, who declared that "this could be for us [Chibi-Robo developers!] the last chance". In short, the situation seems similar, mutatis mutandis, to the one that Fire Emblem lived with Awakening. We wish the robot the same success (more than the same, I would say proportional: Zip Lash will never exceed one million copies, Ed).
The "road" test
VGNetwork had the privilege of previewing the first four game worlds. Here are our impressions.
Chibi-Robo is very comfortable in the role of a platform hero, thanks to a reliable control system and its “tail”, that is the power cord. This object, in addition to the "natural" use, that is to recharge the batteries, has two other no less important ones: it serves, in fact, brandished as a whip just as if we were in a Castlevania, to destroy the enemies (which are simply stunned by the head jump), as well as grappling hook, in the manner of the glorious Bionic Commando. Two keys are assigned to the use of the plug: X for the quick launch and Y for the powerful launch. Both casts have an initial range (not at the beginning of the game, but at the beginning of each single level) of only 15 centimeters, but it can be increased by collecting the appropriate upgrades. The quick launch, as the name suggests, does not need to be loaded and can also be done while running and jumping; on the other hand, it does not scratch the biggest obstacles and has a tendentially shorter range, as there are fewer upgrades. The powerful launch needs to be charged and cannot be used on the move, but it can annihilate all obstacles - the destructible ones, of course - and it can bounce, reaching holds and treasures otherwise closed to the player; moreover, it is characterized by greater precision, since it is possible to "adjust the shot" with the directional cross.
This mechanic at the base of the gameplay is perhaps not particularly "fresh", but it has been implemented properly and helps to give Zip Lash a well-marked identity, together with other systems inherited from the previous chapters, first of all the power supply system: Chibi-Robo, just like an EVA, has a limited autonomy, quantified in 999 Watts, which decrease constantly, as if it was a timer. To recharge it is necessary to connect to the sockets scattered around the levels, which deliver the Watts accumulated previously by throwing the scrap collected in the garbage disposal (according to a procedure incomprehensible to me, energy is obtained, Ed.).
But…
After the nice words spent in the previous paragraph, it's time to touch the painful buttons. Despite a pleasant and well thought out gameplay, Zip Lash he did not conquer us with his first worlds, having revealed himself without bite. Perhaps the "fault" is the fairly obvious level design, which, in the opinion of the writer, abuses the powerful launch, breaking the rhythm a little too much. The rather shabby appearance does not improve the situation, which makes many passages rather anonymous. Even the boss battles we faced did not thrill us.
Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash it will be released this week in Japan and the United States, while in Europe it will take another month, that is, until November 6. Not long before our final verdict on what could be the latest adventure of the cute little robot.
