We have already seen a small but proud platformer with an extremely interesting concept, built on dizzying jumps and stealth. We’re talking about a critically acclaimed project Gunpoint, which was developed by one person – PC Gamer reviewer Tom Francis (Tom Francis). Ronin is in many ways similar to this game: the action also takes place in the near future, and the main character can also secretly eliminate enemies, steal important data from computers, crawl along walls and ceilings and jump long distances. And this game was again developed by one person – Tomasz Waclawek (Tomasz Waclawek).
But to many Ronin and different. The main character does not have “hyperpants” for acrobatic exercises (therefore, a jump from a very high height will still be fatal for her), she is capable of not only acting covertly, but also using a katana to chop enemies into cabbages. And most importantly, this is perhaps the world’s first… turn-based platformer.
There were only two of them left..
Main character Ronin – a fragile girl on a motorcycle, obsessed with revenge. To complete her vendetta, she must sequentially eliminate the five leaders of a certain evil corporation. For what? What did they do to her? There is clearly a very personal and very tragic story here..
And very cyberpunk. In the background there are tall skyscrapers, rain, and you are fighting some powerful corporation and hacking into their computer networks with data to get to their next victim. At all, Ronin – a very stylish and atmospheric platformer. This is the first thing that catches your eye.
The second thing you notice is https://lottofycasino.co.uk/login/ how our motorcyclist with a katana jumps. As in any platformer, you need to jump here constantly, but for this you do not use the space bar or some other key, but the mouse – you must use it to indicate the jump trajectory. And at this moment the game pauses.
Moreover, right during the jump, you can click the mouse again to adjust the direction in flight or attach the grappling hook somewhere to the ceiling or to the wall – at this moment the pause starts again. Let go – and real time goes again: you continue the flight, run along the corridor, climb the wall.
Turn-based killer
But if the guards notice you, the game completely switches to turn-based mode. Moreover, both you and they perform the action at the same time. Enemies, as a rule, want to shoot a girl in a helmet or chop her with a katana – if there are samurai clad in armor at the level. The direction of their attacks is marked with red lines. And your task is to kill or push all opponents from a great height (or even better, push them through the window directly onto the exposed wires) without ending up on the line of destruction. After all, one shot or one blow – and that’s it, we start from the last “checkpoint”.
We have to constantly jump in different directions, knocking down opponents, use a grappling hook, jump behind guards, fall like a kite from the ceiling – in general, use every possible skill. In addition, there are special techniques. If initially only the ability to hit with a katana or throw it at an enemy directly in flight is available (then you will have to pick it up), then over time other abilities are unlocked, for example, stunning shurikens or instant teleport to the enemy (again knocking him down). And after some time, during a pause, when the heroine is hovering over a bunch of guards, you will think what is better to do – throw a katana at that one, teleport to the samurai in the far corner, or throw shurikens at two at the same time.
True, in order to unlock new techniques, you need to earn an ability point at the end of the level. And this will only work if you fulfill all three conditions: kill all the enemies, don’t raise the alarm (some security forces are trying to call for help, so they need to be eliminated first) and don’t kill a single civilian – they like to panic and make phone calls when they see you.
Hidden restrictions
What about stealth, you ask?? Indeed, there is the possibility of stealth passage – it is often easier not to chop step by step, but to crawl under the ceiling in real time and hang guards on nooses or distract them with the help of holographic baits – these abilities can also be developed in order, for example, to learn how to instantly teleport between baits.
However, in many situations it is simply physically impossible to remain unnoticed – when, for example, you can only get into a room full of guards by breaking a window while jumping. Therefore, most often in Ronin you will still be fighting in a step-by-step mode. Well, fans of the “silent killer” style may well grumble. Moreover, the controls in such turn-based fights are specific – sometimes it’s not easy to set the desired direction of the jump and accurately throw the grappling hook. The result is a very complex, almost hardcore platformer, and not everyone has the nerve to go beyond two levels.
On the other hand, this combination of stealth and turn-based acrobatic fights is the main gameplay discovery of the game’s author. And this concept looks really very interesting. And when you get used to the controls, learn new abilities and begin to rush through the levels in a graceful deadly whirlwind (albeit with stops), leaving behind mountains of corpses, shards of glass and severed hands with walkie-talkies clutched in them – then you will receive Ronin lots of fun.
Pros: unique and interesting concept; alternating two different styles of passing; the opportunity to learn and “pump up” new abilities; stylish picture; nice music.
Cons: not very convenient controls; the possibilities of covert passage are limited.