A Knight’s Quest for Comedy Gold?
Coming from Atomic Elbow and Aurora Punks is a third person action adventure featuring a knight with a heart of gold.
The game goes by the unlikely name of Sir Whoopass: Immortal Death, and features the titular hero heading off as they attempt to save the world.
So far, so normal, right? Well, this game has set its stall out on being a little bit out of the ordinary by relying on humour to make an impact. But is this the funniest thing since Monty Python, or does the joke go down like a lead balloon? Let’s immerse ourselves in the silly world of Sir Whoopass and find out…
Thin Plot, Thick Puns
Starting with the story, and it is a bit thin, being honest. We are Sir Whoopass, we start the game in a prison, and we have an arch nemesis called The Immortal.
Of course, the ultimate goal is to end the Immortal, but there are many twists and turns between those two points: can we find the Legendary Villain-Beating Artefact (yes that’s really what it is called) and bring his reign of terror to an end? Will we manage to weather the storm of puns, nods, winks and references? Only you can answer those questions…
Humour That Misses the Mark
Presentation of the game is a bit of an odd one. You see, the areas that we explore, in a third person style, are plenty big enough and look okay. I mean, it’s not Skyrim in here, but the landscapes and various caves and other locations are absolutely fine.
And the enemies that we face, along with the NPCs we can interact with are good too, but sadly the humour does start to raise its ugly head. If I told you that one of the early quest givers was called Roger Morning-Wood, and that the skeletal enemies are all called Boners, you’ll see the level that the “humour” has been pitched at. I have yet to laugh at any of this game’s antics, let’s put it that way.
The animation of the characters is fine though however there is a big issue and that is pop -in. There is a kind of radar at the top of the screen, and enemies show up on that long before they show on screen with them only ‘appearing’ into existence as we get closer. This isn’t good enough on a console with the power of the Series X, and is very intrusive. The camera is also a bit wayward, as with so many third person games, and it’s not unusual to have your view of the action blocked by a tree or a wall, for instance.
With a decently acted voiceover telling us what is going on at all times, it sounds decent enough, but again, this is injected with humour, and again, it quite often falls flat. One of the best is when an NPC we have to interact with tells us “She used to be an adventurer until she took a boulder to the head”. Imitation is a form of flattery, right? Anyway, underneath all the gags and weak jokes is a game, fighting to get out; one that quite often struggles.
Clunky Combat and Slippery Platforming
Gameplay doesn’t get any better, sadly, as there are issues with the two main parts of Sir Whoopass: Immortal Death. Yes, exploration is blighted by some of the most imprecise jumping I’ve ever seen in a game, and making your way through the platforming sections is an exercise in frustration. There doesn’t seem to be any rhythm to proceedings either; sometimes we can’t jump far enough, even though we’d swear we’d just jumped an identical gap, whilst other times we slide off the platform like our soles are made of Teflon. All in all, it isn’t a great way to get around.
Combat is equally poor, and if there is a scale where fighting systems range from a game like Elden Ring at the top, Sir Whoopass: Immortal Death is somewhere in the basement. Every boss fight turns into a toe-to-toe contest, as you keep swiping at the boss, healing until one of you falls over. Some enemies react badly if you block, enabling you to get a few hits in, and others fall over if you dodge, again giving you an opening.
However, the combat is wildly inaccurate, and quite often leaves us swinging wildly in the wrong direction while the enemies hit us. Not having a lock on function really hurts our chances here.
Weapons, Hats, and Waning Humour
Good points? Well, there is a wide selection of weapons to buy, and hats to find, all of which give a boost to certain stats. There are secret wheels of cheese to find too, should you be able to make your way to them. However, the rest of the game tries too hard to be funny: it’s like that one kid in the class who has to be the centre of attention, and tries to achieve it by acting up and showing off. Pushing the metaphor a bit, this kid very rarely gets the balance of humour right, and so it is here.
Sir Whoopass: Immortal Death’s eggs have been put in the comedy basket, and there isn’t really much to keep anyone engaged beyond that. There are much better (and funnier) games out there to spend your money on.
Your Links
Forget Serious RPGs, Sir Whoopass Brings Chaos & Cheese to Consoles – https://www.thexboxhub.com/forget-serious-rpgs-sir-whoopass-brings-chaos-cheese-to-consoles/
Buy Sir Whoopass on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/sir-whoopass-immortal-death/9njtnb9bq5ps
