Also On: PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Switch, Atari VCS
Publisher: Atari
Developer: Graphite Lab
Medium: Digital
Players: 1
Online: No
ESRB: E
What begins as a classic Atari 2600 like game, quickly gets a shot in the arm with a 2023 upgrade as you begin to dive into Mr. Run and Jump. In this vibrant neon filled world, you control Mr. Run and Jump as he follows his pal, Leap The Dog, into the strange world of The Void. At first, things seem very easy, but as you progress, you learn more skills and new ways to venture through this dangerous world, dodging weird enemies, collecting Power Gems and mastering tons of platforming challenges.
Your main goal in Mr. Run and Jump (outside of running and jumping) is to rescue Leap as he goes deeper into The Void. Along the way a new friend named Mr. Watch and Learn will teach you about new skills you can perform. These skills will definitely come in handy with all of the new challenges awaiting ahead. Sometimes a skill you acquire later will be needed, so a little backtracking to a completed area will occasionally be necessary.
The simple, yet amazing visuals draw you into the world right away, and the free-flowing gameplay mixed with precise controls make this an experience that is a joy to play as well as witness. Collectible items and hidden treasure scattered all around each world will keep you coming back so you can 100% each level. There is also Dynamic Assistance options that allow players to set how difficult you would like your experience to be. You will want to keep playing to master each section no matter how many times you perish.
As stated, the control here is completely silky smooth. If you constantly fail in an area, or just not able to pull off a move, you cannot blame the controller or the setup. You really shouldn’t have any issues as everything is mapped where it needs to be for perfect precision control of the character. Visually, The Void and everything found inside is amazing. The dark background mixes well with the neon bright foreground, giving you a sense of depth that seems to go on forever. The animation is also silky smooth and really brings this world to life.
Mr. Run and Jump is an awesome looking game with fantastic challenges that will keep you coming back for more. I absolutely love the entire presentation from the beginning all the way through to the end. Although I didn’t finish some of the more ridiculous challenges (yet), I had fun even when I was yelling at the screen! This is definitely one to pick up, highly recommended!
Note: Atari provided us with a Mr. Run and Jump PS4/PS5 code for review purposes.