Klonoa

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Short remake of classic platformer with some mild violence.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Not yet rated

Kids say

Not yet rated

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this game is a traditional, Mario-style platform adventure with mild cartoon violence. The player's character can fall into crevasses and get hurt when bumping into enemies or spiky objects. Conversely, he can attack by grabbing enemies and hurling them at other foes. There is no blood, but some characters (mostly bosses) do die. Also, a pipe is seen protruding from an older character's mouth.

  • Our hero serves the forces of good. He save various characters, restores life to a forest, and defeats an evil mastermind looking to lead the world into darkness. 
  • Typical platform game action. Players capture and toss enemies to destroy them (they squeak and disappear) while avoiding contact with spiky objects and falling into crevasses. It’s fairly mild, though some characters (mostly enemy bosses) die.
  • Not applicable.

What's it about?

A remake of the original Klonoa, which appeared more than a decade ago on the original PlayStation, KLONOA is a side-scrolling platform adventure game set in a lush, three-dimensional environment. Players follow a set path (or paths) as they leap over crevasses, jump from one floating platform to another, and avoid various health-draining obstacles, such as enemies and spiky balls. You can go on the offensive by grabbing one enemy and throwing it at another, and some areas can only be reached by holding onto a flying foe. Players can also navigate their environments by sliding through streams of water, floating up air vents, and riding carts. Completing the game unlocks bonuses meant to add replay value, such as mirrored environments.


Is it any good?

 

There's nothing particularly groundbreaking about Klonoa, but that doesn't detract from the fact that this is a beautiful and expertly crafted bit of platforming fun. The side-scrolling 3-D level design is nothing short of brilliant. Players navigate lush environments by running circular paths around buildings, ducking in and out of caves, and leaping through the canopies of forests. What's more, the simple controls, which make use of just three buttons and either the joystick or d-pad (Klonoa works with not only the remote and nunchuk, but also Wii Classic and GameCube controllers), can be learned in minutes, regardless of the player's previous experience with games in this genre.

Klonoa's only downfall is that it runs on the short side -- just six hours or so, by our clock. Even casual players could finish it in a single weekend. And with no multi-player options, there's little reason to come back. A great game, but one that is perhaps better rented than purchased.


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What families can talk about

Families can talk about value in interactive entertainment. How many
hours do you expect to get out of a game? Do you tend to play through
games more than once? Does that factor into your value equation? If a
game is lots of fun but lasts only a handful of hours, are you still
satisfied?


This review was written by Chad Sapieha
Kid, 13 years old
June 5, 2009
 
Not So Sure. . .
I've never played this. And never maybe will. I was hoping for a pokemon-ish story, but this appears to be your average adventure game. I'd like to see a warrior cats game with a pokemon-ish backgriund, such as battling cats and defeating Tigerstar like defeating Cyrus.

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Kid, 13 years old
April 25, 2010
 
its ok
there's nothing much to say about klonoa. i never played the classic. so when i got this i thought it would be a fun game. i was half right. the game play was great. the platforming elements worked well. the story was..... ok. the game was way to short. it worked well for portal but not for this. dont look at my review and say " oh he is just hating on the game" keep in mind im 13 so i was looking for more that this game. overall i cant give a good score as this game wasn't made for me. but because i need to give a score i give it 3 stars. this game is meant for young kids 7 to 10. rent this game first. if you/your kid likes it then buy in

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This review was written by Chad Sapieha
Platforms:Nintendo Wii
Available online?Not available online
Genre:Adventure
Developer:Namco Bandai
Release date:May 5, 2009
Price:$29.99
ESRB rating:E10+ for Mild Cartoon Violence, Tobacco Reference

This review was written by Chad Sapieha

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

 

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