LOS ANGELES—Never mind the odd naming. Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is an action-adventure game that should be on your radar if you fancy Zelda games. Pipistrello (which means "bat" in Italian) is a sprite-based title with a top-down perspective, and it's clearly inspired by classic, 2D Zelda games (particularly The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening and The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap). It's showcased at IGN Live, but a demo is also available on Steam.
You play as Pippit, a yoyo-slinging bat on a mission to save his auntie from power-hungry, anthropomorphic mobsters. During the adventure, you explore an urban cityscape, dive into underground dungeons, and defeat the thugs and crime lords who cursed your family.
The pixel art features bold, vibrant, and highly expressive sprites. In fact, one of the graphical modes lets you play on a mock Game Boy Advance to hammer home the nostalgia factor.
Your yoyo serves as your primary attack, but the game has many unique abilities that enrich the action. Strike angled walls to make your yoyo ricochet off walls. Charge your attack to pull off multi-hit combos. Walk the dog and use momentum to pull yourself across gaps. 2D Zelda games don't come along very often, and Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo has the potential to be a wonderful homage to those iconic games.
Puzzle-solving is just as important as combat. The demo featured simple puzzles that involved hitting switches to activate walkways or snagging keys beyond your reach. Advanced puzzles required pattern recognition to activate the correct switch.
(Credit: PM Studio Inc.)Featuring six yoyo tricks that aid in movement and six yoyo attacks for defeating foes, Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo shows a lot of promise. In fact, the sprawling city, numerous vendors, and unlockable special perks made it feel like we were just scratching the game's surface.
The Pocket Trap-developed Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is headed to PC, but lacks a release date.
Disclosure: IGN is owned by PCMag's parent company Ziff Davis.