Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom from developer Game Atelier, a spiritual successor to the classic platformer Wonder Boy 3, is finally coming to PC, as an officially Steam launch is now scheduled for the 25th of July.
The game was originally released for PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch in December last year and was immediately met with critical acclaim. As a result, the announcement of a PC release is certainly good news indeed.
Monster Boy And The Cursed Kingdom Trailer
Lately we’ve reported a lot on Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap, an excellent remake of the 1989’s Wonder Boy 3: The Dragon’s Trap – even giving it a 9.0 score in our review. If you enjoyed that game, or if you have even the slightest interest in the 2D platformer genre, then Monster Boy is a title you should definitely keep an eye out for. It takes the transformation mechanic made popular by Wonder Boy and spins it out into a stunningly beautiful and inventive adventure.
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom follows the Metroidvania/RPG hybrid formula of Wonder Boy. There is a central hub area, and players will gradually be able to access new areas from there as they progress through the game and unlock new animal transformations.
That said, Monster Boy is far from just a Wonder Boy reskin. It sets itself apart from its inspiration with ingenious level designs that blend the traditional platforming experience with tons of wonderfully constructed puzzles that challenge you to think on your feet and switch between various animal forms on the fly to make use of their unique powers.
Everything in this game feels like a lot of effort has been put into it. Each ability is an absolute delight to use, every backdrop serves to add more soul to this already-rich world, and the soundtracks will definitely stay with you for a long time. All of this combined results in a platformer that is sure to satisfy both veterans of the genre and newcomers alike.
As mentioned earlier, Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom will become available for PC on July 25. What’s more, if you want to try it out first to see what it’s like for yourself, you can do that too, as a free demo is already up on Steam.