Should the side scrolling platformer from Hitbox Team be swept under the rug?

Jan 19, 2012 15:41 GMT  ·  By

Dustforce pretty much came out of nowhere recently and impressed quite a few PC owners with its special blend of precise side scrolling platforming gameplay with a unique premise of helping an acrobatic janitor sweep anything from dust to leaves and all sorts of other debris.

We decided to give the game, made by Hitbox Team, a quick look and see if its charm is complemented by its gameplay or if it needs to be swept under the rug.

Dustforce impresses right from its start screen, which shows off the acrobatic abilities of its various characters. After that, you’re simply thrown into the game’s overworld, from where you need to unlock different areas and access their specific levels.

We tried out the tutorial at first, just to get ourselves acquainted with its special premise, of sweeping various things through different environments. While at first you figure that it’s a pretty standard platformer, in the vein of older Sonic games or the more recent Super Meat Boy, Dustforce introduces a few new ideas, like attacking chunks of dust or leaves while engaged in prolonged jumps or acrobatic moves.

You still require, just like the games mentioned above, split second reactions and expert timing to survive some of Dustforce’s dangers, but with practice you can conquer it, even if you might not get the perfect ‘S’ rating.

The environments look extremely sharp and the animations of the leaves, at least from the levels we tried out, are top notch. The music is also quite impressive, with upbeat chiptune tracks giving Dustforce a great retro feel.

You can check out Dustforce in action in the video above. Expect our full review of the side scrolling platformer early next week.