PopSlinger Reviews
PopSlinger is a tremendous game and one that may not be for everyone, but everyone who plays it will find something to love about it.
Fighting waves of boogers could have been fun if the mechanics were refined. The ugly and garish visuals with unappealing characters also might have been tolerable if the gameplay loop wasn’t so repetitive. With some rebalancing and checkpoints before bosses, Popslinger could have been a decent guilty pleasure.
Going into this charming indie game, I was excited by the strong visual identity and musical score. But I came away feeling flat. The strong presentation, great audio design, and unique mechanics do not make up for unfair challenges and needlessly punishing players for playing on lesser difficulties. If you are willing to give Popslinger a chance and fight back against the foam, you might enjoy the otherwise sweet soda beneath.
There are plenty of great ideas to get your teeth into. However, the execution of each element leaves you wanting. Sadly, it is far too difficult and the learning curve and scoring system will infuriate you. Consequently, unless you love to be pushed to your limit, I suggest giving this a miss. More information can be found here if you wish. Can you step up and become a hero? Grab your gun, combine the colours, and save the world.
As a fan of new and odd ideas, the thought of a game that has a mix of elements from beat-em-ups, shooters, and a little music to boot sounded like it had real potential...
PopSlinger is a two-dimensional beat-em-up that features a girl on a quest to save the world from terrible creatures with a soda theme. Thus, the game features various weapons that resemble different types of cola and showcases flashy and energetic music inspired by New Retro Culture. Are the calories worth it? Or should I just drink water? Find out in this Rapid Review.
Popslinger brings the heat with music and design, and keeps the fire going with tough-but-fair shooting challenges.
.I didn’t think the story was that great and enemies to be weak, I really enjoyed myself playing PopSlinger. Is it for everyone, no, but is it something people will enjoy, absolutely? If you grew up with classic arcade games and SNES side-scrollers, I think you will enjoy yourself playing PopSlinger. And even if you want a casual game to play, this is also first in that category. I can see myself playing this again someday. But I do think that the game needs more improvements and a better story. I’m not expecting a masterpiece of storytelling but I would at least like something that’s memorable. Like every time a new cut scene happened, I had forgotten what happened in the previous one. Besides that, PopSlinger is a good game, but not a great one.
As much as Popslinger ticks all the boxes for me – great setup, banging soundtrack, beautiful aesthetics – it just isn’t fun. It turned from a game into a chore, one where I felt obligated to try and go further and see more to justify where I was. I think, with some gameplay tweaks, this could be a really successful game. As it stands, however, Popslinger just doesn’t hit the high notes and leaves the player feeling pretty flat.
Unfortunately PopSlinger is a hard game to recommend to most gamers. If the developers can make a concerted effort to balance and streamline the camera and combat issues I pointed out, as well as helping the game provide clearer visual cues, I think this could be something special. As it is now, however, it’s just too much of a mess to recommend to anyone that isn’t willing to put a ton of effort into the experience. Hopefully Funky Can Creative learns from this game to make their next adventure one that lives up to the hype.