REVIEW - Telmari’s crisp visual design can’t hide its mechanical simplicity
Plunge me.
By Jonathan Garrett
20/02/23
Reviewed on PC.
Review copy provided by Phoenix Blasters.
Telmari does exactly what its premise suggests; a simple precision platformer with an escalating difficulty. Unfortunately in this case, having an uncomplicated elevator pitch ends up proving to be a disservice to the game as a whole. The central plunger mechanic is an endearing concept, but the lack of complexity to both the level design and gameplay mechanics leaves the whole experience feeling hollow.
Take the central gameplay loop - progressing from left to right while avoiding environmental hazards and various enemy types. It’s not inherently an issue, and the basic timer / rating system to encourage repeat visits and leaderboard bragging rights is an appreciated flourish. But the level design runs out of momentum far too quickly and you’re left with a frustrating sense of repetition.
In terms of the character design, the games namesake is wonderfully expressive. The hand drawn quality to both the environment art and Telmari herself is definitely the strongest aspect of the game, and at full 4K resolution, it looks and runs like a dream on PC. It’s clearly not a particularly demanding title, but nevertheless the graphics are well conceived.
Unfortunately, the controls don’t lend themselves particularly well to the plunger arrow mechanic, as trying to place it correctly in order to achieve the required sequence of movement can feel more like guess work than actual problem solving. The whole thing becomes an exercise in patience, but without the reward loop oftentimes associated with games of this type.
The cat is jolly.
WORTH IT?
At the bottom of every game review, we ask the question: Worth it? And the answer is either “Yeah!” or “Nah”, followed by a comment that sums up how we feel. In order to provide more information, we also have “And” or “But”, which follows up our rating with further clarification, additional context for a game we love, or perhaps a redeeming quality for a game we didn’t like.
NAH.
Telmari is a well meaning effort, but one that lacks the complexity to truly stand out.
BUT
The art style is visually pleasing, and the use of a plunger as a central mechanic is undeniably jolly.
TARPS?
At the bottom of some of our articles, you’ll see a series of absurd looking images (with equally stupid, in joke laden names). These are the TARP badges, which represent our ‘Totally Accurate Rating Platform’. They allow us to identify specific things, recognise positive or negative aspects of a games design, and generally indulge our consistent silliness with some visual tomfoolery.
