Precision platformers—such as Slime-San, The End is Nigh, or Celeste—can be tough to pull off given their razor-sharp requirements. Make the game too frustrating, and most players won’t even try to overcome the devilish challenges laid out for them. Make the game too easy, and it’ll lose a lot of its ‘hardcore’ appeal. Pond Games' Rite is the latest entry in this exacting genre, concerning itself with nothing else than presenting you with 160 difficult platforming courses to attempt to beat. There’s no story, there aren’t many level gimmicks, and yet it remains a thrillingly gripping action game that no fan of the genre will want to miss.
What immediately sticks out about Rite is how excellent movement feels, something that can make or break a platformer. Your little priest/creature can go from standing to running full speed almost instantly and you have fine control over their momentum as you jump between walls and narrowly slip between saw blades. We did not run into a single instance where a death felt like it was tied to faulty inputs or strange physics; every button press is responsive and puts your character exactly where you intend to.
This is especially important given the tough level designs on offer here. While Rite may feel a little easier than its aforementioned peers in the genre, you’re sure to have to take at least a few attempts per level before you finally understand how to pass the axes, saw blades, and prickly vines that stand in your way. It’s easy to avoid being discouraged, too, given that stages only take about a second to reset every time you die. For those who are confident in their platforming skills, every stage has 20 collectible coins that often require you to take more risks; getting them all unlocks the final set of levels, which predictably give you a run for your money.
Getting that far doesn’t take too long, however; most of our clear times for levels sat somewhere in the 20-30-second range. This doesn’t include any failed attempts on a stage, but even factoring that in, there were only a handful of levels that took us longer than five minutes to clear. This is perhaps the weakest element of Rite—you’ll probably have gotten everything you can out of this game after a few days at most. But, we found this short run time to work in Rite’s favor, as levels passed by so quickly that it was nearly impossible to resist trying another.
As for presentation, Rite goes with a minimalistic approach that doesn’t feel cheap in its execution. Though environments are a little samey, sprites are sharply drawn and your character stands out well from the background, which also helpfully has a grid-like layout to make it easier to calculate jumps. The action is backed by a relatively low-key soundtrack that mixes synthwave elements, guitars, violins, and light vocalizations to create ambient music that fills space without being distracting or repetitive. Plus, it helps set a calm tone that counteracts the difficulty nicely.
Rite is an absolute gem that we hope isn't hidden by bigger releases hitting the eShop. Pond Games absolutely nails the execution of a simple concept and wraps things up before the game overstays its welcome. At the price of just seven bucks (even cheaper at launch), this one is a no-brainer pick-up for anyone who considers themselves a fan of tough platformers; tight controls, challenging levels, and a chill soundtrack all combine to make Rite the easiest of recommendations.
Scoring Policy Review copy provided by Pond Games
Mitch has been a fan of Nintendo ever since he got his start on the GBA in 2005. When he's not busy playing games or writing, you can find him down at his local MMA training facility learning how to punish the unrighteous.
Part of me enjoys the challenge that this type of platformer presents, but a significant part of me gets turned off by the repetitive nature of them - after a few cleared levels it just feels more of the same. I need something to break up the gameplay a bit.
I wouldn't mind a simple platformer like this. I got fed up with Celeste when I started getting lost in some places. Once I have to refer to GameFaqs or YouTube to get through games I start to lose interest quickly.
I enjoy this genre when I’m watching a show and feel like playing a game during commercials. I’ll have to check this one out if the price is right.
I already had my eye on this game, but the review was much more positive than I was anticipating. I have a few very similar games to this on my Switch and how tight the controls are tends to determine whether they're a great or mediocre game. I'll definitely pick this one up.
@Clyde_Radcliffe I will say that only a few sections in the middle are ones to get lost in. The later levels are much more straight forward and harder. I’d highly recommend pushing forwards to the final climb of the peak It’s definitely worth it
Short is a bonus for me right now! Definitely going to add this to the wish list.
I adore all of these kind of platformers. So this one being so good is tempting. I've already bought too many games recently, I'm being a baseball man in mlb the show, and I've been playing the mega drive/genesis remakes of the first 2 NES mega man games on the Nintendo online thing.
But I want this now. I don't need to buy gas for heating my flat, it's summer, there's a heat wave. So sure, I can afford another tricky but awesome feeling responsive instant respawn platformer. It's my favourite type of game probably
Thank you for the review
@FishyS what are your recommendations for similar? I've done the Dadish trio & Gato Robato and loved those. Have Super Meat Boy which I have not played yet. Interested in your recommendations, esp those with tight controls, and if they go on sale really cheap even better.
Boy that OP pic and actually gameplay or worlds a part. I’ll probably give it a shot but if it requires the reflexes of a 20 year old, I probably won’t make it far. Kind of one of my favorite things about Xenoblade 3, you can literally let the characters auto fight if you need a break from the controller for a few seconds. On the north side of 50, my hand eye is definitely not what it used to be.
@EliSweetG I'd recommend both The End is Nigh and Slime-San. Don't see those ones talked about as much, but they're every bit deserving of praise
@EliSweetG Super Meat Boy is fun but much harder than Dadish. There are a lot of fun medium difficulty similar games.
There are probably many more, but those games are a few with somewhat similar vibes which I have enjoyed. There are also a lot of truly atrocious similar games which I won't list here.
Rite has been an absolute joy to play so far. I was not expecting so much from such a cheap game. An absolute hidden gem. I’m expecting this one to make my year end list in some capacity. Sometimes it’s great when a game is just unbelievably fun. I definitely feel spoiled with the surprise of this right after the surprise joy of Rollerdrome.
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