90s platforming at its finest?
Rad is a rambunctious but spirited young boy who maybe plays too many video games. After dozing off at the tail end of a long night of gaming, Rad awakens to find his dusty old console has turned itself back on and is sucked into the gaming world as a character in a platformer.
Rad Rodgers is the latest in a resurgence of 90s style platformers, taking inspiration from the likes of Earthworm Jim but with the humour like Conker’s Bad Fur Day or Duke Nukem. Rad handles like a traditional platformer but with shooting like EJW and while it offers some nostalgia to those types of games, it’s also on the short side at just a few hours long and there isn’t a vast variety between the stages you come across.
As a platformer, it works well but doesn’t do anything to change the foundation of the genre and in truth, the best part of the game is the humour. It’s a fun experience and one that I will keep coming back to till I earn the rest of the achievements, but it feels like a missed opportunity with the design that will please fans of the genre, but I felt it could have been more varied overall.
Visually, the game is stunning for a platformer that has that 90s feel to it. I would have killed for visuals like this when I was a kid, while the voice-acting is a mixed bag, but the humour is good overall, while the music is decent too.
The Verdict
Rad Rodgers is a nice throwback to the 90s in its look and design, but I can’t help feeling like it could have been so much better than the final result. The game’s length and similar levels hold it back from the greats like EJW but overall, it’s still a fine platformer with great humour and one you’d rue missing out on.