I do like a good shoot ’em up. Developer and publisher Claymatic Games have a new/old shooter out now, Platypus Reclayed. But does it play as good as it looks?

“22 years after its first appearance, the iconic Platypus is coming back, featuring updated gameplay, new weapons and additional content. Get ready to dive into the heart-pounding action of this fast, frantic, and incredibly fun arcade-style shoot-em-up!”

I always like to be honest with my reviews, so I’m starting with a confession. I’d never heard of Platypus before. A wee bit of research later and it turns out that Platypus was originally released back in 2002 for the PC and in 2009 for the PSP and Xbox. Well, it back and now with plenty of new bells and whistles as Platypus Reclayed. Not a remaster, a complete remake built from the ground up for modern machines. 4K widescreen, new weapons, new graphics, new gameplay features and more.

Just by watching the trailer and glancing at the screenshots, you can probably tell that this game as an interesting art-style. Using claymation, you get a very colourful and vibrant looking game. While the visuals are impressive, the gameplay is very bog-standard. Don’t get me wrong, bog-standard doesn’t mean bad, it’s just very typical and underwhelming given the game’s quirky art. What you get here is very basic, left-to-right scrolling, shoot ’em up action. Five levels with each level split into multiple areas… with an obligatory boss fight at the end. I like how you can jump into any level/area you have played and start the game from that point. So you don’t have to go back to the very start and play through all levels/areas, if you don’t want.

Platypus Reclayed’s gameplay is exactly what you would expect it to be. It’s neither fresh, new or innovate and nor is it dull, boring or tiresome. It sits there in the middle and delivers a perfectly playable experience. For me, what really sells a great shoot ’em up are the weapons/power ups. This game both hits the target and misses with this, at the same time. Along with all the usual weapons that you’d except (wide-shot, rockets, etc) Platypus offers up some really bizarre weapons like the ability to shoot donuts or fish at enemies. It’s fun and quirky… like the graphics. Yeah, the weapons themselves are the hit, the miss part is the power up mechanic.

My favourite power up mechanic in old school shooters is that Gradius style where you destroy a wave of enemies and it drops a token, You collect the token and save them up to manually select the weapon that you want. I like this method because it gives you choice and even adds a bit of strategy as you pick the best weapon for the job at hand. I also like (but not as much) the R-Type style. Take out a specific enemy and it dops a specific weapons that you can chose to pick it up or not. You know in R-Type that when you pick up that blue thing that you’re getting those bouncy lasers instantly. Platypus Reclayed uses a mx of these two mechanics, but also an idea that I really don’t like in shoot ’em ups.

How you get weapons in this like Gradius, in that you have to shoot a whole wave of enemies, but they don’t drop a token that you save up. It’s more like in R-Type where a weapon (a star in this case) for you to pick up is dropped instead. However, it does that thing (I really don’t like) where you then have to shoot the weapon to change it to the one you want. Want rockets, keep shooting the star until it changes, want wide-shot, keep shooting the star until it changes. The reason I don’t like this method is because you already have a lot to keep your eye on in a frantic shooter like this. Enemies flying in from in front and behind, bullets whizzing by that you need to dodge. So to then add the idea that you have to shoot the weapon until you get the one you want is just plain annoying, especially when you do one too many shots and it changes from the weapon you want to one you don’t. Also, in a shoot ’em up your weapon usually lasts until you lose a life. Here, they only last several seconds. I like the weapons in Platypus Reclayed, I’m just not a fan of the power up mechanic to get those weapons.

You can unlock the original Platypus too. Now, don’t tell anyone but… I much preferred playing the original over this remake. In terms of the remake, I love the widescreen because it makes perfect sense for a side-scroller, the HD visuals are a treat and are far better than the original, and yep, the new weapons are a joy. However, I felt that the original played better. I don’t know why and I can’t seem to explain it, but the original just plays better. However, it doesn’t matter which version you play, you get some brilliant C64 chip-tunes either way. The music is awesome and I spent 10 minutes just on the title screen alone, listening to some classic C64 music.

So then, is Platypus Reclayed worth a play? Yeah, I reckon shoot ’em up fans will have a lot of fun with this one and if you enjoyed the original, then there are plenty of updates here to make it feel like a whole new game. Plus, the original is here to unlock and play too. You get a co-op mode, a practise mode and even score attack mode. So there’s a decent bit of content here. That’s before I mention the gallery where you can look at some behind-the-scenes pics on how the game was made. Available now for PC and all of the consoles and with a £13 price tag, Platypus Reclayed is a fun shooter with a ton of personality. It may not be anything deep or different from dozens and dozens of other shooters out there, but it does have a rather unique personality of its own. And you can shoot hotdog sausages at aliens…

If Wallace & Gromit were to ever play videogames, they’d play Platypus Reclayed.