Three hundred pounds of pressure? Daredevil extraordinaire, Joe Danger, takes it all in his stride
Format: PS3 Dev: Hello Games Pub: Hello Games Out: 09/06/10 Players: 1-2
He courses through the air, flapping his arms like a phoenix, twirling and posing as he performs his daredevil acrobatics aided by his trusty red motorcycle. He’s seconds away from hitting the ground, surely he’ll never make it, will he? 20 feet… 10… five… SMASH… and the crowd goes wild!
Attempting a life threatening stunt in reality might not be your thing, but Joe Danger not only removes the risk of fatal injury, its thrilling and infinitely moreish take on stunts gives all the more reason to leave the cracked ribs to a virtual envoy. With its side-scrolling perspective and steep obstacles to navigate, Joe Danger has lots in common with Trials HD, only with an added focus on death-defying aerial acrobatics that can be chained together for increasingly spectacular combos.
Joe Danger, the Evel Knievel daredevil of the game’s namesake, handles with flair and balance that can only come from years of testing one’s limits to the very brink – and a little help from his wonderful coaches at Hello Games, the tireless foursome responsible for Joe’s comeback. Don’t let his charismatic grin and wobbly paunch fool you. On the circuit he’s as capable and speedy as a monkey, responding to the barest adjustment and recovering quickly in the event of a botched crowd-pleaser. Free analogue movement enables wheelies, spins and more complex tricks, bringing skill and timing to the gameplay. Experimentation is encouraged and dutifully rewarded with the captivating displays that follow.
In career mode, the challenges that you face are broad and offer a tremendous amount of replay value. Hello Games have dreamt up some truly devilish, but ever so entertaining, stunt gauntlets: landing on targets, grabbing collectables, and ducking under, leaping over and boosting your way to the finish in core stunt events. Some of the latter events certainly test your boundaries and after the 56th attempt it can be infuriatingly taxing. Fortunately, instantaneous restarts with one button press mean there are no insidious loads to speak of.
The game’s beautiful artistic style captures the optimism and splendour of its subject much like Jerry Anderson’s imaginative marionette creations. Chirpy, upbeat music, that even Joe’s mole friend and the cacti encircling his caravan can be seen bopping to, is deliciously tuneful – even more music and soundtrack selection are two things I’d definitely like to see. There’s also two-player multiplayer and a track editor that allows you to create tracks and send them to friends. It isn’t as robust as LBP, missing some of the basic camera, quick edit and share options that would make it more accessible, but here it’s icing on an already scrumptious cake.
Restoring everything that’s great about addictive pick up and play games, Joe Danger draws you in with its polished looks, it holds your trembling hand as you catapult off a ramp for the first time, and then it hooks you with its combo system that will keep you returning to best hi-scores with twitchy temptation. Joe Danger is a genuine triumph that pulls off the impossible and makes a perfect landing.
Aaron Lee
Tags: action, download, driving, hello games, joe danger
