We recently announced the release of Thrill Penguin, a retro-style budget platformer, on consoles. Since then, we’ve played it and given our thoughts in this first impression post. Thrill Penguin is available on Switch, played here, and Xbox and PlayStation, priced at $4.99. The game has been published by Ratalaika Games, developed by Sylph, and was originally released on Steam in 2022.
The game kicks off with a very retro title screen and chiptune theme that could be straight out of an NES game. The overall style of the menus is also retro, with some great 80s-style fonts and colours. Thrill Penguin also includes some filters for emulating the CRT experience for both arcade and TV. The graphics are great and emulate the 8-bit gaming era perfectly. The pixel art is bold and straightforward, with some excellent animations, especially on some of the moving scenery.
During our playthrough, many of the levels required multiple tries, although some just seemed to flow so good that you hit it the first time. Also, the variety of levels that the game switches around at every turn really helps Thrill Penguin feel like a rollercoaster at times. What is for certain is just how tough Thrill Penguin can get. The levels start to ramp up in difficulty quite early in the game. That said, anyone can jump in and give it a go; it’s one of those games where simple practice will enable you to start moving on, no matter your skill level.
Thrill Penguin excels in providing a solid performance, mostly because it controls so well. Once you get skilled, you start pulling off some excellent platforming manoeuvres. There are also many ways to control our penguin hero, he slides, swims, scales walls, and divebombs out of danger. This variety in the move set allows for a lot of different level types and traps that keep Thrill Penguin a fun ride throughout.
When looking at budget games, it all depends on the value for money and how long the experience lasts. Thrill Penguin has 54 levels and lots of variety in its gameplay, as well as fastest times to try to beat. At this price point, this is great value, and any arcade or platformer fan will get a kick out of this one. Thrill Penguin is the perfect game for a long journey or for gamers looking for a retro fix for a few hours over a weekend.
