Let’s not kid ourselves: Nothing will come close to Hades anytime soon. After all, it’s not for nothing that the action roguelike has won one trophy after the other – and the sequel is already a lot of fun!
But that doesn’t mean that we aren’t happy about high-quality new releases. Especially when they turn out to be a nice surprise! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate is one such case. The game is clearly inspired by Hades, and no: it never comes close to the great role model. Nevertheless, it does a lot right – and even has a strength that Hades can only dream of: a co-op mode for up to four players.
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If you play on Apple devices, you may have already come across the new Turtles adventure, Splintered Fate was released for iOS last yearBut now the new Turtles spin-off is finally making the leap to consoles and PC. We start with the switch implementationlater this year the other platforms will also be served. But is it even worth it? We think: yes, if you go into it with the right expectations!
Source: Super Evil Megacorp Apart from the great Shredder’s Revenge, Turtle fans have not exactly been showered with highlights in recent years. For this reason alone, Splintered Fate is worth a look. What we particularly like about it is that the game does not have the computer-animated, somewhat childish look that has prevailed in recent years. Instead, there is a dark style that reminds us more of the popular reboot series from 2003 reminded. That fits really well!
In Search of Splinter
Unfortunately, the story is not a great strength, even if it starts off promisingly: Master Splinter has been kidnapped, Leonardo is overwhelmed by Shredder’s troops and mysterious portals suddenly appear. Well-known characters such as April and Casey appear, there is chatting, puzzling and joking – thanks to the good English speakers, there is a good Turtles atmosphere.
But then the authors suddenly put the brakes on, and that is exactly the problem: Where Hades entertains us from morning to night with brilliantly written dialogues keeps you on trackthe Turtles plot progresses only slowly. This does not change the fact that Tom Waltz even brought an experienced TMNT author on board. Optional conversations are far too rare, and when they do take place, they usually go in circles. The resolution of the plot is also weak; for example, who the main villain is is never revealed. It feels as if the developers had saved a few ideas for a possible expansion or sequel. It’s just a shame that none of them were ever announced.
Quelle: PC Games
Teenage Mutant Ninja Hades
But the game does a lot of things right when it comes to the basics. You and your favorite turtle hit, kick, slash and stab your way through numerous small arenas that are spread across four different chapters. The order of the levels is strictly set, just like in Hades 1, and the boss enemies always appear in the same place. That’s a shame, because it makes the game feel more static than it needs to. There are no alternative paths or different routes, even though they would have fit well into the game concept.
The enemy types don’t change much either: you mainly beat up various foot ninjas and trigger-happy Mauser robots, as well as a handful of mutants armed with poison weapons. The original could have had a lot more. But at least the enemies are well designed and put us under a lot of pressure, especially when there are large numbers of them.
The mini-bosses that we meet from time to time are also well done: there are robots armed to the teeth, nimble elite ninjas or a guy in a heavily armored mech suit – they all have powerful, randomly selected properties, heat us up with real effects storms and bring their own reinforcements with them. When half a dozen enemies charge at us, good reactions and lightning-fast dodges are required! At times like these, you hardly notice that the game was originally developed for touchscreens: the gameplay works so much better with a gamepad.
Quelle: PC Games
Motivating upgrades
In keeping with the original, the four Turtles differ slightly in their fighting style and basic skills. Leonardo, for example, throws ninja stars and dashes quickly at opponents. Michelangelo scores points with area attacks and multiple hits. Raphael relies on brutal critical hits in quick succession, while Donatello heals himself between each fight and can also use special weapons faster than his brothers.
All four turtles are brilliantly animated and the controls respond quickly and reliably. There’s no need to look for depth, the action is fast and uncomplicated. But it only really gets fun once you’ve collected a few upgrades – because here too the turtles make heavy use of Hades.
