If you’re one of the many who jumped into last year’s popular and cheerful action platformer, Super Lucky’s Tale, and came out with a smile on your face then the announcement that DLC would be arriving to expand the fun-filled adventure will have been something you’ll have been anticipating for some time. Nevertheless, it’s been six months since release now and with the Gilly Island DLC now out for Super Lucky fans, I decided to jump in and see if it was a worthy extension to the adventure many enjoyed last year.
So, what do you get for the extra cost?
First of all, it’s worth noting that despite coming in at a rather lowly cost, Gilly’s Island is nothing to scoff at as it does in fact bring us an entirely new world to get stuck into away from the base game. The new world is rather limited in levels however, with just three new ones available to play through as well a boss battle with Lady Meowmalade. But with a host of new characters and the unusually low price, I can’t argue too much when it comes to value.
Lady Meowmalade is one of the new characters players face within Gilly Island and she is the one causing a *ahem* cat-astrophe upon the tropical resort of Gilly Island. Having hijacked the local festivities on the island in favour of celebrating her horrible sounding newly-released single and forcing the tourists to suffer the worst party imaginable in the process, it’s up to Lucky to jump in and save the day by breaking all the speakers before Lady Meowmalade ruins their fun. The biggest task however is to help Lucky’s sister rescue the Book of Ages from Jinx – the mysterious villain attempting to reshape the world, and the rest of the nefarious Kitty Litter that stand in your way.
Sounds quite fun, doesn’t it? If you’re looking for something fresh over the base game however – at least in terms of gameplay – then you’ll be disappointed as Gilly Island is quite simply more of the same. Whilst there is indeed the new setting and some exciting new characters, there isn’t much more to note in terms of major differences.
That said, the content included in Gilly Island is still surprisingly fun to play, even if it does feel like a rehash of previous ideas. Each of the levels involved in the Gilly Island DLC carry a slightly different feel to them and whilst the game is naturally aimed more towards the younger audience, there are certainly some challenging sections involved for those who don’t frequent platform games all too often.
The first of the three levels is a simple enough stage with players required to guide Lucky through a series of tasks around Gilly Island. The second is a slightly more challenging one with a maze to navigate as you try and bring shade upon the island, and the third and final level brings a classic platforming side-scroller which sees players aiming to avoid becoming a victim of cannon fire from a local pirate ship. Beat those though and you’ll find yourself going head to head with Lady Meowmalade in a boss battle in the disco hall – one that proves a lot more challenging than I initially expected it to be.
Unfortunately, whilst the new characters are rather interesting, there are a few returning issues that remain in Gilly Island, with clunky movement and awkward camera angles popping up on occasion.
On the other hand, however, the DLC offers yet more vibrant visuals that are full of colour and bustling with creativity in both the setting and characters alike.
Overall Gilly’s Island is a decent experience for anyone who enjoyed the base game. With more of the same enjoyable gameplay and some exciting new characters, there is enough to go on to get a bit more time out of the game yet, even if it is only a short experience.
