Charge Kid

This game reminds me of super meat boy, and why I never got far in it. Very precise aiming / timing is a must in order to progress. I found it very hard, but I am not a typical consumer of these types of games. I bet a lot of people would appreciate the challenge this game offers. I, on the other hand, feel like taking a long break after getting to level 9 (it took me over 20 minutes of banging my head against the wall) :S I do have an issue with the way mechanics are introduced - I got stuck on level 3, and by pressing buttons at random I stumbled on a key mechanic. I don't think I could progress without it. However, this mechanic is not officially introduced until level 5! The controls feel nice and responsive. My old game pad worked. All the buttons were correctly assigned from the get go, which is great as it's not always a given. The art design is simple and clear. Everything seems to fit well together. The music and sound assets feel like the weakest part of the game. They exist, and aren't terrible. Overall, I believe this game is a great value offer considering the price.

I own this game on Switch so my playtime on Steam does not accurately reflect how much time I've spent with Charge Kid. It's really hard to explain why this game is so excellent. I would compare it to The Witness, Super Meat Boy, Elden Ring (I'm not kidding), and Dark Souls (still not kidding). The brilliance of Elden Ring is in how the game makes you feel while playing it. This game makes you feel a certain way that so few games offer. In the beginning you will feel restricted and daft for not knowing what to do. About level 6 you will realize what is actually going on. The feeling of restriction wears off once you realize that you actually have TONS of options for overcoming the challenging levels. The game tells you so little (less than The Witness) that every little bit of progress makes you feel super clever, and that's often justified. There's secrets, hidden paths, speeding running opportunities, and so much more. I cannot say enough good things about the game. But it would be unfair to not mention it is very difficult at first. Once you realize what you can do (and the fact that this is more puzzle game than platformer), a huge number of options open up for you to experiment and progress through until the end. Super satisfying and super fun.