If you’re growing tired of your AAA games or just need something to pass the time while waiting on the next big hit, why not check out some of the many fun and unique indie games available now on the PlayStation 4 and PS Vita? Might I suggest 1001 Spikes, the newest game from Nicalis that will have you raging over how many times you will utterly fail in this game. Like Dark Souls (which I have never played but have heard great things about) you will be dying. A lot. This is probably why the game starts you off with 1000 lives in order to beat the 100+ levels included in the game that will test every ounce of your skill and patience.

Disclaimer: Developer Nicalis was kind enough to send over a PSN code for this game so that we could play it on the PS4 and PS Vita.

Story

The game has you playing as Aban, a loner with daddy issues. Aban’s father had always been quite hard on him so at an early age, Aban left and set out his own path without his father’s help. Several years later, Aban has become quite successful as a hired treasure hunter. One day, Aban gets a message from his sister informing him that their father, Jim Hawkins, the world-renowned archaeologist, has disappeared while exploring the frozen reaches of Antarctica. Before his disappearance however, your father has left you map that supposedly leads to the legendary lost treasures of Ukampa.

Your quest will take you to many different locals filled with danger and traps and hopefully to riches beyond your wildest dreams.

Gameplay

I’m assuming that this probably isn’t your first time reading a review about 1001 Spikes and if you’ve read others, you’ve probably noticed a common theme. This game is hard as nails. I don’t think I have played a game this difficult in a long time, not since the old 8-bit NES days where games like Ghost & Goblins really tested your skill and patience. 1001 Spikes is brutally difficult and may cause excessive yelling, cursing, and maybe a thrown controller or two.

Mechanically, the game is as solid as they come. It’s actually quite an easy game to learn as you only really use the thumbstick or directional pad, and three buttons for low jump, high jump, and dagger throwing. It plays like a traditional platformer and the separate buttons for low jump and high jump are actually very convenient for this game over the traditional way of holding down the jump button to jump higher. This makes jumping much more accurate which is something you really must be in order to play this game.

The challenge comes with the levels themselves. They are almost impossible to beat unless you have massive amounts of patience, the ability to learn from your deaths, and sometimes, huge amounts of luck. Levels are littered with deadly dangers like spikes, flames, arrows, disappearing floors, and even giant scorpions. What gets you every time is that for each trap you think you’ve passed, another trap gets you 2 steps later. Literally every other step you take you can expect there to be some kind of deadly trap. The trick is to spot the patterns, but even then, you’re not guaranteed to beat the level on your first try, or your second, or your third, or your 20th. In fact, there have already been several levels I’ve played where I’ve gone through 30-40+ lives just to try and beat. It’s that hard.

Luckily, if you are so frustrated and can’t beat a level, you can move on and choose to skip it. This allows you to maybe clear your head and start on a fresh level. I know that when I can’t beat a level, I get super frustrated and sometimes just don’t want to play anymore, but with the ability to skip a really hard level, I can keep playing and come back to that level later after I’ve calmed down. Of course that’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to beat the next level you’ve skipped too as again, these levels are difficult no matter what your skill level is.

Lastly, there are multiplayer levels and games available to PS4 players. You can play these games with 3 other players locally. I wasn’t able to try this mode as I only have one controller for my PS4. Also, on the PS Vita, there is no multiplayer available, but you’re still able to play these levels and games on your own. These open up as you play the regular story mode.

Final Thoughts

I loved 1001 Spikes despite it being the most difficult game I’ve played in recent years. The last game I played that was maybe this difficult was that of Spelunky and that too was a fantastic game. 1001 Spikes is similar in that it is brutally hard, but because the levels are not randomly generated, it is possible to get much farther in the game as long as you pay attention to everything that is going on and every trap you come across. It requires a ton of patience and if you think you can’t beat a level, just back away from it for a bit and come back to it later. You can even skip it if that’s your thing.

Overall though, fans of old school style platformers will feel right at home playing 1001 Spikes. I remember platforming games on NES being very difficult as well and I had loads of fun playing those as a kid. I may never have beaten one of those games, but I did enjoy playing them. As an adult, I still enjoy playing them, but now, I actually want to beat these games and my OCD will not allow me to fail. 1001 Spikes will definitely test every ounce of your skill and patience but you feel rewarded every time you beat a difficult section because of the effort you have to put in. Nothing is handed to you in this game and that’s actually quite comforting, even though you’ll most likely want to throw your controller of PS Vita out the window when playing this.