Overview – developed by Frozen Flame Interactive and published by Eastasiasoft, Okko The Exiled is an action platformer about a dragon demonkin named Okko on a journey through the land of demons. As the dragon horned youngster, travel through the land of Kutala to fulfil his destiny, bashing his way through hordes of enemies. This title is currently exclusive to PC platforms with a link to each version of the game at the bottom of this review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank Eastasiasoft for providing the copy of Okko The Exiled that was used for this piece. The provision of this software has not influenced the contents of this review, all thoughts and opinions contained within are my own.
Now with the introductions out of the way, let’s get into the review, starting with the story. I will be covering the core aspects of the game, doing so to prevent spoiling any of the surprises and secrets of the game.
Story – in the land of Kutala, there are battles between demon lords for control of the world. The Demon lords Sabaoth and Yaldabaoth fought for supremacy and control as ruler, but Sabaoth fell in battle and was imprisoned. Now the descendent of Sabaoth, Okko has been set free after being kept under strict watch since he took form. Okko sets out on a quest with his Mighty Fang, encountering demons and monsters as he seeks to fulfil his destiny.
Gameplay – Okko the Exiled is a side scrolling action platformer, where the player controls the titular dragon tailed demonkin. In this adventure, players must make their way through a series of levels, bashing enemies with the Mighty Fang and using platforming skills to pass obstacles. Over the course of the adventure, players will cross the different domains controlled by demon guardians, each with their own distinct theming and enemies.
The adventure is broken up into stages, where the player must make their way through each of them in order, exploring each domain in a linear fashion. This progress system is reminiscent of classic action platformers, as the different regional areas have two stages and a boss battle each. To clear a stage, the player must make their way through the areas, split into segments which are filled with enemies and traps to overcome.
To beat down the enemies, the player will be able to use Okko’s weapon the Mighty Fang, a large club like weapon that Okko can swing with ease. In combat, players are able to use a variety of basic attacks, with Light and Heavy strikes that can be used against enemies facing Okko. These include direct forward swings, strikes into the air and stomps, which can unearth objects, which can be struck with heavy attacks sending them and other things flying.
The weapon can also be used to aid in platforming, as Okko can use his club to strike down and bounce off enemies and objects, allowing him to cross perilous gaps. This can be very useful in and out of combat, as there are areas that can be just out of reach. This includes high platforms, holding chests, health items and gems that are currency to be added to the player bank. Gems are scattered throughout the level, with small and big ones that give different values.
While navigating the different areas, players will also gain energy with a red and blue meter that will fill during exploration. These two meters have a unique purpose, with the red being the power of Heart Focus, and the blue being Okko’s Dragon Power. When activating Heart Focus, a circular bar will appear with a metronome like effect, by timing inputs correctly, Okko can unleash greater attack power. When the Dragon Meter is filled, players will have access to powerful special attacks.
Players can also collect Projectile Skulls, which will follow behind and can be unleashed as a special one-time use attack. The projectile will fly directly infront of Okko and deal massive damage to the foes in his path. Now, combat and platforming isn’t all there is to the stages in the game, as there are also puzzle elements that will require the player to think a little strategically. These include doors that need to be broken down, hidden paths and out of reach areas.
These little puzzles help to prevent the game from being repetitive, as it encourages exploration when not bashing monsters in the face. While exploring, there are many hidden secrets to discover, including little devil like demons that need to be rescued. By saving these lil critters, there are special things that can be unlocked. Players will also be able to find special chests, which are locked via Heart Focus and need to be broken open with a well-timed strike.
Danger lurks around every corner in the demon world, so players will need to refill their lost health if they want to survive each level. To recover from damage, players will need to collect skulls which provide a full health point, or bones that refill half. These can be found scattered in the levels, hidden in secret areas, or within chests. It is also possible for some enemies to drop the recovery items, but these can be relatively rare.
There will be traps in the areas that pose great risk to Okko, with wall statues and skulls that expel fire, spikes that will cause harm on contact. Combined with the enemy forces, these threats can be fatal, leading to the player being defeated. If this happens, the stage will continue from a checkpoint, which are manually activated by striking them. There will often be gates near these checkpoints, which need to be triggered to open and allow progression.
To aid the player in their adventure, there are potions that can be found throughout the stages. These will be added to the player inventory, which can be activated as needed if the player has them in their possession. They include health recovery and projectile summon potions, which can be very useful in risky encounters against boss monsters and enemy hordes. By using potions, a dire situation can be turned around turning possible defeat into victory.
At set points in some stages, there will be wave battles, where the player will face a horde of enemies, these occur in enclosed arenas that need to be cleared before progressing. However, these aren’t the only type of enclosed battles, as there are boss battles at the end of each stage, where the player fights a powerful opponent to reach the goal. Defeating these monsters offer great rewards, while also allowing them to reach the end crystal to clear the stage.
After the main stages of a region are complete, Okko will be able to face the guardian of the domain. This will have them fighting the most powerful forces that linger within the realm, engaging in deadly battle with unique gimmicks for each encounter. When the player defeats these guardians, they have a chance to obtain new powers to use in the adventure. As the adventure progresses, the player will be unlock new skills including a dash and leaping aerial strikes.
Between stages, there is a hub world called the Old Throne that can be explored. While in this inbetween place, there are residents that can be interacted with, offering story details and services. There is the Chef that offers meals from ingredients collected in stages, a vendor that offers potions for new stages and a mage that can enhance the player skills. There are also hidden areas and special extra features for players to interact with.
If players miss any of the secrets or items in the stages, it is possible to return to previously cleared stages and replay them. This adds additional replay value to the game, as it allows those who want to get 100% completion to be able to clean up any of the missing pick-ups. In some circumstances this may be mandatory to find all items, as there is a chance that some areas may not be easy to reach without the upgrades that can be obtained.
Now with the gameplay covered, it is time to discuss the other aspects of this release, starting with the controls.
Controls – as this is an action platformer with an emphasis on combat, there are a lot of inputs that players will need to juggle. The general attacks and platforming are on the face, with the additional features like potion use and Heart Focus on the top buttons. These inputs are relatively reactive, with nicely responsive inputs that make the action feel smooth. All of the inputs feel comfortable with a range of controls supported via Steam Input settings.
Difficulty – there is a generally balanced difficulty curve to this release, with no real adjustable setting but this doesn’t affect the game experience. There are some spikes in challenge with the game, with some traps and enemy placements that can feel unfair. But they are not overly punishing, as there are plenty of checkpoints in the stages. The only issue I do have is that potions used are not refunded if you die after use, but that is just a nitpick.
Presentation – From a visual perspective, Okko The Exiled has a look that is very close to the 32-Bit era of gaming. There are large bold sprites, detailed environments and smooth animations, with camera scaling and perspective that aids visibility. While retro style sprite based games usually have visibility issues, this luckily does not. The sound is pleasing, with a retro style soundtrack that has a good range of compositions that fit the themes of each area well.
Final Thoughts – I do enjoy action games, with platformers being one of my favorites, so Okko The Exiled was right up my alley. The look of the game feels close to the games of the time, with challenging platforming and responsive combat that is satisfying in action. I also enjoyed the narrative that the game presented, with characters and a world that felt fleshed out. This is alongside natural feeling progress with the growth of character skills during play.
There are a few little areas that the game needs a little polish with I feel, as some of the traps could feel unfair to some players. This is most common in areas that require tight platforming, causing players getting hit by fireballs, spikes and more, which can lead to unfortunate deaths. However, this does feel like it is authentic to the challenge of the past. In general I am happy to recommend this game to those looking for a new action platforming adventure.
In the end, I give Okko The Exiled a final score of 4.75/5. This is a solid retro styled action platformer, with a lot of depth to the action, world and characters, offering players an adventure that feels like it has been plucked right out of the past. if you want to check this game out for yourself, a link to each version of the game will be below.
Link to Steam version (HERE)
Link to GOG version (HERE)
