Cheril in the Cave: Cheril in the Cave is finally published for the NES

December 25, 2020, 02:49 Evgenia Germanova ред.

Oh Dios mío! How can you tell us, please, what strange place the developers who created it want to throw the unfortunate yet? And whether in decent form or "as usual"? I'm talking about Cheryl and The Mojon Twins, of course.

Oh, how many adventures have fallen on her fidgety ass? Ay, no, she can't get enough. This time in Cheril in the Cave she (the developers' intention) is going to visit a certain tiered cave. So why, you ask? Surely for the reward - in fact, how can you resist, when the capture of the evil monster promise dalele lifelong gift of watermelon candy! Well, that's just it!

It's worth noting right away that the gameplay has become noticeably more intricate compared to the usual MK1/MK2 engine jumpers. In addition to jumps, platforms, enemies, and topological hazards (like acid puddles, air currents, conveyor belts, spike traps, or, naturally, circular saws), there are also items. And although the previous part of the game, Cheril the Writer, already had some pickable gear, yet there the main gameplay was about something else (about activated timers and mopping up monsters). Here, however, objects have become an absolute necessity: the lever to fix, then find the floppy disk, the mechanism to restore, then guess where and how to put the cargo - it certainly is not yet Dizzy, but the trend is quite commendable. At the same time you can only carry one subject (well, yes, there is no pockets), in the manner of the unforgettable Myst. Or the first Dizzy, yeah.

Similarly with the puzzles - before there were none at all as such (only acrobatic sketches and computing runs in time), and now here you have all sorts of switches and valves, which can both create interesting situations that make you run through the floors, and force to beat some sort of switch combinations, sometimes even on different screens. The clues are served up by quite a number of tablets, which are definitely worth reading... All of this is resolutely gratifying.

As for enemies, then omropex rare zombies and deceptively smiling flying "cubes" Cheryl here waiting for bats (chasing her in a straight line, but not flying through the walls) and, sorry, some roaming hand-jobs (there is no other way to call it that). Any of them can (and sometimes should) bravely jump on their heads, as neither Cheryl nor the respective enemy will suffer any damage, and the heroine will simply bounce upwards. The only way to destroy them, perhaps, are the spikes and acid, but even there to lure not all.

Any other contact with the enemy, except jumping, or falling, say, on a circular saw, is fraught with loss of life. Of which Cheryl has only five (not nine, alas). Well, there are lots and lots of ways to die here. Often, just to cross some screen, you have a couple of times or three forced to stumble. Blago revive our girl is very close, but the lives of those rapidly melting away! However, everything is not so bad - from time to time in the labyrinths of the cave caches with hearts, which restore all the lost lives.

There are three levels in all: the first is tutorial and completely linear, the second consists of several sequentially unlockable tiers, and the third consists of many connected screens and a whole bundle of items. Thus, it's not until the third level that Cheryl faces a really serious challenge. All of the levels are nicely designed and of high quality. Why, look for yourself in the game screenshots, and at the same time look at the funny poses of the heroine.

Platformer Cheril in the Cave was developed in 2017, for some time was sold only on cartridges, and posted in public access was only now. Now you can download the game for free from Perfect Pixel or from its page on the developers' site, and rejoice in the new twists and misadventures of the shameless heroine. The source code is also available for download.