Just in time for a spooky scary Halloween is Pumpkin Jack -- a rascally pumpkin headed character ready to take down all that is good in a boring, prosperous human world.
Just in time for a spooky scary Halloween is Pumpkin Jack -- a rascally pumpkin headed character ready to take down all that is good in a boring, prosperous human world. Interested in playing the 'bad guy' and have a good time doing it? This one might be for you then!
The plot: So the Devil is bored. All the humans are having a nice time, living lovely little lives and sometimes forces of evil just get tired of all that nonsense! The Devil devises a plan to bring back a legendary rascal: Jack--and pop his soul into that of a pumpkin...man? Okay, so it's the Devil, alright? He can pretty much do what he wants, outside of stepping over the Georgia lines and knocking on Johnny's door. Jack is down for the plan, and with an evil glint in his eye (socket?), he sets out to ruin everything the humans have amounted in the way of happiness and security.
Unfortunately before the Devil came to the conclusion to resurrect our anti-hero Jack, there was a little...hiccup in the plan. Doing a big, fancy spell to resurrect a bunch of monster baddies too, these are on the technical side of evil--but are mindless, therefore keen to attack Jack on his mission. In a nice relation to MediEvil, you'll be fighting all sorts of ghostly ghouls that coming drooling after pumpkin seeds like zombies do brains. Early in the adventure, you befriend a crow which you can sling to take these monsters out--a corvid boomerang, if you will.
Pumpkin Jack's gameplay revolves around 3D platforming for your big world desires--navigate around the atmospheric landscapes, building, caverns and of course, graveyards to do your evil bidding. It is a bit tricky controlling Jack, especially his momentum in the air as he jumps, but overall the platforming is quite an enjoyable and not overly difficult (see: fun) experience. Peppered in are numerous puzzle locations: Jack being able to get into certain buildings and areas by way of magic and shedding his shell of a body becoming a simple pumpkin with vine tentacle arms. It's pretty fun and reminds me quite a bit of Banjo Kazooie's pumpkin morph, and the puzzles themselves prove to be a nice challenge.
In addition to the puzzles and platforming, there's a nice array of mine cart and chase sequences to mix things up. Overall, the constant shift in level design back and forth through these things helps keep the idea fresh--and even in the more difficult areas, there's a generous amount of checkpoints throughout the game to encourage. Things can get tricky, but you're never too far away from a load in.
Pumpkin Jack isn't just for Halloween despite being perfect for it. It's a fun and enjoyable adventure, full of (undead) life and personality all around. It does have a few short comings like the challenge of controlling Jack, but overall this stuff can be overlooked. The story is cute, there's unlockables, and it's pretty easy on the eyes to look at. If you're looking for something unique, or themed for the holiday Pumpkin Jack is your perfect pick!