Garlic - Review - Xbox

Garlic is a retro inspired 2D platformer with a heavy focus on challenging platforming gameplay. You play as Garlic, an onion-headed boy who is determined to climb the Sacred Tower to meet the Cyber Goddess who grants wishes to heroes who reach the top (and apparently wants to seduce her!) . Along the way, you will face a variety of obstacles, including spikes, traps, enemies, and even moving platforms through one of the craziest games I have played in a long time. From the get go the game is bursting with weirdness. Imagine if Celeste and Wario had a baby and they sprinkled it with Katamari - Garlic is what would be left! Developer SYLPH has done a great job with the overall randomness in the games charm and style, and that's before we even get to the gameplay!

The core gameplay in Garlic is precision like platforming akin to what you would find in Super Meat Boy. You can jump, dash, and wall jump to move around the levels. You can also use your dash to perform a variety of combos, such as launching yourself into the air or launching yourself backwards. There are plenty of checkpoints to help you if you die, and the levels are usually short enough that you won't get too frustrated if you make a mistake. However, the game does get progressively more difficult as you work your way through it, so you will need to be patient and persistent if you want to reach the top (and I mean VERY patient).

There are also a host of fun mini games in between the normal levels. These include things like racing and tidying up, the better you do in them, the better your love connection to the Goddess will improve! These are just dumb fun but they really break up the game and give a refreshing moment where you're not going to be throwing your controller at the TV.

Features:

• Many checkpoints to not get frustrated

• Platform action gameplay

• Nostalgic pixel art

• Epic boss battles

• Funny story of heroism

The graphics in Garlic are a feast for the eyes. The game is rendered in a retro pixel art style reminiscent of classic 8-bit games with bright, crisp and colorful sprites, however the backgrounds are full of moving objects and effects and the animations on Garlics face as he reacts to things show that this is more than just a retro game.

Pros:

• Challenging gameplay

• Unique visual style

• Catchy soundtrack

• Plenty of checkpoints

• Short levels

Cons:

• Some levels can be too difficult

• The dash can be a bit difficult to control

• The game can be repetitive after a while

Overall Garlic is abit like a jar of Marmite. You will either absolutely love it, or you will hate it with such a passion you would bury it in a desert. The punishing difficulty in the later levels will be a huge deal breaker for many, but if you can stick with it and slowly but surely chip away, checkpoint by checkpoint, then you will be able to complete the game and enjoy all its weirdness to the fullest. TOTAL SCORE: 7.5/10

Garlic was released onto the Xbox store on the 7th July 2023. The game is playable on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S consoles. Priced at £14.99 it can be purchased HERE. A copy of the game was provided for this review. A big thanks for that!