Roll your way through tricky platforming challenges and take on new forms to solve puzzles as a reanimated skull trying to save the island from warring elementals.
Skully
Developer: Finish Line Games
Price: $30
Platforms: PC (reviewed), PS4, Xbox One, Switch
MonsterVine was provided with a PC code for review.
Skully is a 3D platformer in which you play as a skull, dubbed Skully by the deity who reanimated him using one of the many magical clay pits on the island where the game takes place. The island is home to four elemental deities, but a quarrel between three of them threatens the whole island with destruction. The fourth, Terry, brought Skully to life in the hopes that he can help him talk sense into his siblings before their conflict goes too far.
As a skull, there isn’t much you can do. Skully can roll, jump, and climb along certain mossy walls, but that’s about it. That’s where the game’s transformation mechanic comes into play. Clay pits around the island not only serve as checkpoints and let you heal yourself but also let you transform. Over the course of the game, Skully gains three different forms he can adopt–one that can break down walls and fight enemies, one that can run fast and move special platforms horizontally, and one that can jump high and move special platforms vertically. Each has an additional ability learned later on, as well.
You’ll need to make use of all of these transformations, as well as Skully’s natural skull form, to overcome the island’s numerous obstacles. At times you’ll need to use their powers together to reach your goal since Skully can exit each larger body while leaving it active. You can only have three out at a time, though, so you’ll need to think carefully about which ones you need.
The puzzles start out fairly simple and become more complex as you go along. Some made me feel clever for solving them, while others left me wondering if I’d really solved them as intended or if I’d forced myself through in a different way. However, since the developers said in interviews prior to launch that Skully was designed with the idea that speedrunners would find shortcuts and unplanned routes, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. A few puzzles near the end became a little tedious as I switched between forms multiple times to get myself across the map, but that wasn’t a big issue overall.
Levels are fairly linear in design, but there are numerous side paths to take if you want to find all of the flower collectibles located in each level. Collecting flowers isn’t necessary, but you unlock concept art as you collect more of them. A chapter select option means you can easily replay a particular chapter if you’re trying to unlock everything.
Although Skully is set on a single island, the role of the elemental deities means there’s a wide variety of environments you’ll visit, although the basic mechanics tend to stay the same–there isn’t a huge difference between hopping across lily pads in the water or tiny platforms above the lava. Despite this, Skully does manage to have a fair amount of gameplay variety across its chapters. Some are fast-paced platforming sections focused on making precise jumps, some are slower-paced levels focused on puzzle-solving, some are boss fights, and there are even a couple of chases where you need to flee toward the camera a la Crash Bandicoot. Skully’s speed and momentum as a skull make the platforming rather challenging at times, and one more traditional chase sequence was annoying due to the precision of the jumps combined with the camera’s placement, but checkpoints occur frequently enough that you’ll never lose too much progress.
While the gameplay is the primary focus, Skully has a surprising amount of story. This is conveyed in part through dialogue from Terry and his siblings as you journey through each level, and also through cutscenes. There’s no clear explanation for how Terry travels with you–cutscenes show him walking alongside Skully, yet each level is full of paths only Skully can traverse–but just try not to think about that too much. The story starts out fairly humorous thanks to Terry’s commentary and banter with his siblings, but it gets more serious later on. Some of the humor doesn’t quite work, but just as I started to think Terry was becoming more annoying than funny, I realized that was intentionally building toward a satisfying payoff as he interacted with the other deities. The ending felt like it could have used just a little more to make it really work, but in general it was a fine climax and resolution that left me happy to have fulfilled Skully’s quest.
The Final Word
Although it occasionally becomes tedious and some sections can be frustrating, Skully should please fans of the genre looking for a 3D puzzle platformer with a fun, well-told story to accompany its platforming challenges.
MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
