Noitu Love 2: Devolution for PC is a rare example of 2D gaming done right. Developed by Joakim Sandberg, NL2 is a side-scrolling beat-em-up / shooter that is nothing short of Treasure quality, and I do not give such praise very lightly.
As hero Xoda of the Green Helmets, you must survive the return of the Darm army that was once demolished by Noitu Love. Led by Mr. Almond, you must unravel the mystery of Cyborg Doppelori (who has returned after almost 100 years of being dormant) and destroy the returning Darm military threat. NL2 is full of knuckle-whitening, non-stop action, so accomplishing your tasks will require good hand-eye coordination and plenty of patience.
For a PC game of this nature, the controls are very easy to understand. The left-mouse button is used to attack and the right-mouse button creates shields that can block environmental obstacles like fire, for instance. The keyboard is used to control our spunky hero Xoda. You can choose between the arrow keys or four pre-mapped keys: W, S, A and D to control our hero. Tapping the W key (Up) will make Xoda spin jump, and tapping left or right will make her dart forward.
Xoda begins her adventure inside a high-rise apartment building discussing the return of the Darm army with the Green Helmet Leader, Mr. Almond. There is very little pause before a Darm enemy suddenly appears outside Xoda’s apartment and begins shooting in the windows. The game begins immediately with you racing to the other end of the apartment while dodging flying glass and fireballs. You eventually hurl yourself through a window and plummet to the Darm army infested streets below.
Our little green hero battles through streets, a Castlevania-style clock tower (with some incredible 2D effects), a flying scene with shooter elements that can only be described as brilliant, along with a host of action elements that have you hanging on to rings from the ceiling to cross dangerous fire pits, and battling larger-than-life bosses.
NL2 plays like a classic game from the past. Everything about it feels polished, well executed, and very unique. Despite being a side-scroller, it does things you wouldn’t expect. The enemy AI is quite good (enemies actually react to your actions), and the bosses are the oddest (but most enjoyable to watch) group of misfits ever seen in recent memory. A bearded robot in a ship-like tank flies in from the distance and crashes to the streets; a droid named 02-Joy dances inside an Opera house and uses his dancing ‘moves’ to attack; and a strange looking cowboy-droid riding in a car uses a guitar to fire a barrage of missiles. The bosses in NL2 are numerous, original, and some of the most entertaining characters you will ever experience.
Actual gameplay is pretty straight-forward. You punch, kick, and plow through your enemies to complete each level. A combo system keeps track of how many enemies you destroy. Speed is important when building up combos, so keeping a steady pace is important.
NL2 is a work of art. The graphics are colorful, rich, and very unique in their presentation. There is nothing borrowed in the visuals and everything has been drawn from scratch. Xoda and her foes animate smoothly, and even smaller items animate just the same.
Even the audio is some of the best ever heard in a video game. From the title screen to the very end of the game, NL2 has track after track of catchy, upbeat tunes that compliment the action quite well. Just brilliant.
Noitu Love 2: Devolution was developed by a single person within an 18 month period. You can tell that a lot of heart, love and soul went into the development of this title. The pillars of the industry are built on talented individuals like Joakim Sandberg, the sole developer of Noitu Love 2. Developer Golgoth Studios have acquired the rights to Noitu Love 2: Devolution with plans to release it on the Nintendo Wii later this year.
In the meantime, you can purchase the PC version for $10 from Konjak.org. Do yourself a favor and buy it; you won’t regret it.
Score 9 out of 10
Mike ‘STGuy1040’ Pittaro
Platform: PC
Price: $10
Developer’s– website
Official Golgoth Noitu Love 2: Devolution website: http://golgothstudio.com/devblog/
