Tembo The Badass Elephant

Editor's Notes

PlayStation 4 version reviewed.

Introduction

Far and above everything else, Game Freak is known for creating the 'Pokemon' series, however, the company has created more than the mega popular franchise. Their latest title, 'Tembo The Badass Elephant', is a collaboration with Sega, a company well known for its quirky, unique games. With such a pedigree on hand, just how well does this game stand up to the lofty expectations of these high-profile companies?

The Game Itself: Our Reviewer's Take

The enemy has taken over, and there seems to be little hope for this peanut shaped island. The island's last hope? A retired elephant named Tembo. He comes to take out the phantom menace, running down foes and saving civilians… simply because he's a badass.

'Tembo The Badass Elephant' is a platformer title, so the story isn't particularly important. Instead, this title relies more on its gameplay and controls to provide player enjoyment. The goal of each level is to defeat as many enemies as possible, while saving as many civilians as possible. It's not required to defeat all the enemies or save everyone in each level, but each zone has a counter of overall enemies that must be defeated before the next set of levels unlocks.

Interestingly enough, the enemy requirements for the zones are quite high, requiring players to fully explore all the levels and defeat the majority of enemies. Those that try to rush through the levels will find them running short on the counter, requiring them to go back and play the levels again. It can be a bit frustrating working through the levels multiple times to find a few missed enemies, but overall as long as players are exploring and finding the majority of the secrets, they should reach, or be close to, the requirements needed to move forward.

Now, those of you reading the review might think that all 'Tembo' is about is smashing through everything with reckless abandon, and that's not a hard conclusion to reach based on the title and the overall objective of defeating every enemy in one's path. Beyond this rush'n'attack style, however, 'Tembo' focuses far more on precise, deliberate platforming. The option to rush through the levels is there with the dash button and the attack moves associated with it, but those trying to move too quickly will often rush themselves right into a waiting enemy and take damage, or miss an extra area filled with enemies to smash through, ruining their final enemy count.

In a lot of ways, it reminds me of the 'Donkey Kong Country' titles—'Tembo's' levels are filled with secrets and the levels are designed less to get from point A to point B and more to use all the tools at the player's disposal to accomplish a goal, whether that would be to finish a level or to find a secret area to explore. It's very rewarding, even if some of the title's stiffer requirements and harder to find areas can grate on the nerves after multiple attempts at levels.