Developer: Sega Publisher: Sega Release: 05/11/95 Genre: Platformer
Rare’s use of pre-rendered graphics in Donkey Kong Country was a watershed moment in gaming. Rendered elements were used here and there prior to that game’s release but never to that extent. Once it hit the floodgates were open. In addition Toy Story revolutionized animation with some of the most impressive use of CGI to date. Now imagine a 2d platformer that combines the look of DKC with the toy theme of Disney’s classic. Sounds like a recipe for one of the greatest 2d platformers ever doesn’t it? Clockwork Knight is not that game unfortunately. Although it has its heart in the right place it only slightly above average overall.
At midnight Chelsea the Clockwork fairy wakens the toys of the house with her voice and a merry time is had by all. When a mysterious enemy kidnaps Chelsea both Pepperouchi and his rival Ginger leap into action to save her. It is a bit serendipitous that Clockwork Knight released the same year as Toy Story although both properties approach the same theme in different ways.
Pepper is a toy soldier who wields a key blade as his weapon. The standard thrust can weaken enemies at which point you can pick them up and toss them around. You can twist the blade after thrusting to further damage enemies as well. Since your weapon is a key it can open gift boxes and locks. While the mechanics are easy to pick up the controls are sloppy. Pepper’s movement is momentum heavy and imprecise. He also tends to slide around and feels slippery to control. The loose controls become a problem in the back half of the game when platforming becomes more of a focus. While you can adapt it is far from ideal and should be better.
The toy theme permeates every aspect of Clockwork Knight. The game takes place entirely in a house with its rooms serving as levels. The game starts in the kid’s playrooms before moving to the kitchen and finally the attic. They use the toy theme to great effect, much like Monster in my Pocket. Everyday objects such as tea cups, toy planes, clocks and pencils suddenly take on a deadly veneer. The game is at its best when it turns man made environment into one big playground. A toy train track is a brief respite from the straight platforming. A sink full of dishes will challenge your ability to control Pepper while a piping hot stove threatens to end your life at any moment.
These moments are fleeting however. Ultimately Clockwork Knight suffers from being boring. It has its moments. Most levels feature more than one path to the exit and plenty of hidden areas. However in most cases you can easily make a bee line to the exit with little resistance. It picks up in the Attic however by then it is too little too late. Clockwork Knight left me wishing there were more to it. More could have been done with its theme and mechanics. The keyblade turning is underused and could have added some much needed depth to what is a by the numbers platformer.
The lacking difficulty does not help either. Clockwork Knight is insanely easy despite the slippery controls. Life restoring gears are abundant and most enemies put up little resistance. Between levels you can bet bottle caps to win extra lives in large numbers pretty easily. Despite the lack of any checkpoints most will breeze through the game until the attic. Only the bosses put up any fight with these encounters being the game’s highlight. And just imagine: the western versions are more challenging than the original! Was the Japanese version for babies?
The distinct look of Clockwork Knight is why it would receive so much attention prior to release. Clockwork Knight uses pre-rendered sprites mixed with polygonal background elements for a 2.5 look. For the time it was amazing and beyond anything on the 16-bit platforms. The sprites are large and well animated; sometimes a little too well. Aside from that almost all of the game’s bosses are polygonal and pretty impressive for its time. The game makes sparing use of polygonal background elements that interact with the foreground in cool ways. When all of these elements combine, the 3d backgrounds, the scaling effects and the toy aesthetic, it makes the world feel “solid” and alive. This is what was expected of the next generation.
In Closing
Clockwork Knight is charming, no doubt. But charm only gets you so far. The simple mechanics and rudimentary level design do not match the game’s playful aesthetic. At a time where the 2d platformer was nearly perfected this simple game does not cut it, especially as a launch title for a new platform. Clockwork Knight is unique enough that you might want to take it for a spin once, especially as it is short. But this is not one you revisit after that. The sequel is a much better game.
