122) Pumpkin Jack (2020)

Developed almost entirely by Nicolas Meyssonnier, Pumpkin Jack is clearly a passion project that is seemingly inspired by MediEvil. It plays as a platforming action game that uses the dressings of Halloween and horror to instead deliver slapstick comedy. Like MediEvil, it has a number of collectibles, a smattering of weapons, and more than a few secrets to find along the way. My initial impression, upon seeing it available to buy, was that it would be a cheap knock off of the game that inspired it. Instead, what I found was a game that, by and large, surpassed its well known counterpart.

Set in the Arc En Ciel Kingdom, our story begins with the world at boring peace and disgusting harmony. So, in order to shake things up, the Devil himself summons the Curse of Eternal Night, spreading darkness, monsters, and chaos across the land. As this was very much not in line with what the people wanted, they asked for help from a mighty Wizard, who vowed to end the Devil's curse. Now, you might think that in this scenario that we'll surely be playing the role of the noble Wizard as he seeks to save the world from darkness. That's where you'd be wrong.

Instead, the Devil enlists the aid of Stingy Jack, a cursed trickster that he puts into a pumpkin, and tasks him with defeating the Wizard in exchange for being forgiven for his past misdeeds. The pumpkin, attached to a scarecrow, then sets out defeat the Wizard who's trying to save the world. We're joined by an incredibly helpful crow, who acts as a ranged attack, and an owl who nags at us more than anything. Along the way, we have to fight against the very monsters the Devil summoned, primarily because they're mindless beasts that attack on sight, though I imagine the Devil also probably gets a kick out of it.

Gameplay primarily consists of some rather solid platforming with some very rudimentary puzzles sprinkled in. We begin our adventure with a simple yet effective shovel as our primary weapon, though we also meet and befriend the aforementioned crow. Combat is simple, yet engaging, and each new level sees us acquire a new weapon to add to our repertoire. These vary in usefulness, though I admit that a lot of it can come down to personal preference. The major standout is the varied boss encounters. While it's not always immediately clear what the objective may be, they still provide a fun and challenging change of pace.

In many ways, Pumpkin Jack more than accomplishes what it sets out to do. It's a fun and engaging action platformer with more than enough charm and character to set it apart. While it doesn't really innovate anything, it's still a solid experience that skews on the easier side. Its greatest strength is in the writing and in the love and care that clearly went into its design. While a bit on the shorter side, I can absolutely see myself revisiting this gem once every spooky season or so, and I can highly recommend for either casual players or people who want to share a spooky experience with their kids. While it was likely overlooked upon release for any of a number of reasons, this is one game that I'm glad I pulled the trigger on, as it proved to be a thoroughly enjoyable experience.