Dracamar PC review - Might as well jump

This has been one of the best years for 3D platformers in recent memory. Dracamar continues this trend with a bright, colourful game with a decent amount to do and mostly very good controls. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, though, as there’s some jank to contend with, in addition to the game’s presentation being heavily generic. Despite these issues, the game is still very much worth a playthrough for anyone who wants to collect some trinkets and explore levels.

Truth be told, Dracamar‘s plot isn’t a particularly memorable one. A bad guy is trying to corrupt a place with the forces of darkness, and it’s up to some kids to stop him by jumping on a bunch of stuff. You can pick from one of three characters (who are all identical and more akin to skins than anything else) and take them through the game’s levels to try and turn the tide against the baddies. It’s familiar stuff, but aside from the poor voice acting, there’s nothing objectionable. It’s just all very slight.

The game has an overworld that requires you to walk to each level node to start it. Interestingly, you can visit some places out of order, so there’s a bit of non-linearity here, which I thought was a nice touch. One level, however, was weirdly hard to locate, and I didn’t find it until I’d scoured the map after beating the game. Each level really just tasks you with moving to the finish line (which is a star portal), but there’s more to it than that. Levels can be large-ish and are generally well-paced, but you’ll naturally be hunting for collectibles on the way.

The main collectibles in Dracamar are a variety of seeds. Tracking these down will let you plant them in an area nearby, as each seed grows into a creature. You’ll need a certain number of creatures to help a carpenter construct the path to another section of the world, so finding these is imperative. Finding even more seeds will get you some currency for your trouble, used to buy new outfits and accessories. It’s not exactly a bold structure, but it undoubtedly gets the job done. You can even unlock little bonus shooter levels, which, admittedly, don’t add much.

Since this is a 3D platformer, you mostly know the drill here. You’ll run, jump, and fight enemies while exploring the levels, and the controls are easily the strongest suit here. The characters have a jump, double jump, forward roll, and attack to work with. The roll and attack obviously damage enemies (who are easily dealt with, as this is not a game about fighting), but the attack can be used to give you a lot more air, which I enjoyed. The mobility options in Dracamar are seriously quite good, and they really elevate the experience. Granted, there are times when you’ll get stuck on walls here and there, but moving around is mostly more than satisfying.

The level design is also quite good, with varied worlds with plenty of room to explore. Dracamar took me about 7 hours to 100% (according to its timer, I didn’t actually find all of the optional medals that easily add another hour or two of playtime), which honestly seemed like a good amount to me considering. It’s not a long experience, obviously, but it ends while it’s still plenty of fun. The game’s presentation, however, is easily its worst attribute. The worlds and characters look like generic kiddie fodder, as none of the characters have much personality, and most of the levels, while diverse as I said, just aren’t really much to look at.

There are also some issues here and there with all geometry disappearing on occasion, in addition to the aforementioned issue where characters get stuck in walls. The jumping is also a little floatier than I’d like, with the double jump and air attack combined giving you a bit too much leeway. It can be quite hard to fail at times due to simply how long the characters can stay in the air. The levels have copious checkpoints, too, which can be used to switch your character and change their outfits and accessories. This was another feature I didn’t figure out until beating the game, as I don’t recall ever being told checkpoints did this.

There are several boss battles that are all decent enough. This is clearly a game for children, so its low difficulty isn’t really a problem. Despite this, I still found the level of challenge engaging enough for the duration of my playthrough. Dracamar won’t blow anyone away, but I very much enjoyed it as the simple, child-friendly 3D platformer it is. I do wish it had time trials and the like, but this is a very good choice for any genre fans looking for something else to sink their teeth into.