Stunning retro-tinged adventure launched yesterday, and we got on board for a Beyond Galaxyland review.
Gun-toting rodents, robotic cabals, a mysterious swashbuckling figure, and psychedelic adventures in the city are just some of the things you can expect when Beyond Galaxyland comes crashing onto your screen. Available now on PC and consoles Beyond Galaxyland is a pixel art platforming escapade that we first tried out during Gamescom 2024. It whisked us away from the indie entertainment booths and into an exotic world, filled with more than a few familiar ideas.
Following the fate of human high schooler Doug and his pet hamster Boom Boom, this epic set of encounters pluck players from the relative norms of Earth and deposits them on a new world. Removed from everything he knows Doug finds his life upended, his world apparently destroyed, and his hamster more than a little grown. Between the general anguish and utter confusion, things don’t stay like this for long. Soon after this unexpected departure from the rigors of school life, a swashbuckling space adventure seems to unfold. A mysterious stranger, a scientist, and a robot drag Doug out into the local solar system and off on an adventure that might end in vengeance or even a return home.
Remember Home
From the outset, Beyond Galaxyland tugs at these old heartstrings. I grew up in the age where home entertainment systems, computers, and arcades were coming of age and a love for that era of video games shines through. The retro effect 2.5D platforming presents like many major retro throwbacks, but without feeling unduly aged. While; there’s a clear nostalgia trip incoming, the world of Galaxyland feels modern. While the likes of Doug and robot companion MartyBot are pixelated, models are clearly scaled and drawn to fit a modern monitor resolution. The content ratio fits a standard 16:9 format and there’s not a prop out of place.
Little moments make it clear that Beyond Galaxyland is more than just a space farming exploration of Monkey Island. There’s a cinematic feel to the whole experience. Developer Sam ‘EnrightBeats’ Enright makes a deliberate effort to add to the environment, giving Doug and his friends a fore, middle, and background to play with. This means cutting across through forest thickets or clambering into ancient ruins might find views obscured or see the camera change focus. The player view pans and tracks across the screen to draw attention to boss encounters or important interactions, rather than simply linger in place. Lighting is even nuanced enough that you’ll notice reflections on stone and a depth to creatures that’s a little reminiscent of a paper diorama or Tatebanko.
World Design
The attention to detail is obvious right from the first moments after Earth flows through the rest of the environmental design. Across a range of worlds, and I do mean worlds, wildly different influences from hellish desserts, to labyrinths, shantytowns, and neon cityscapes are filled with weird and exciting views. Giant cat club bouncers, walking squids, floating robot overlords, and entirely inhuman species all intermingle. Not to mention your gun-slinging pet hamster Boom Boom.
As if a strange new alien world full of oddball inhabitants isn’t enough, this impromptu adventure lands Doug with some new companions and a mission that he doesn’t entirely appear to be in control of. These new friends are just as unhinged as Galaxyland, starting out with a floating hologram robot, a mutated sentient giant hamster, and a run-of-the-mill teenager. Whomever you end up with during your travels between planets, Beyond Galaxyland provides plenty of ways to find your way out of this mess.
Platforming is a core component of moving around, and this largely makes sense. Levels are big enough that you’ll be able to explore for a short while and a trackable quest system and mini-map exist so you won’t get lost loitering around town. Getting to and fro is far from problematic, but still manages to be just enough to entertain. Puzzles begin to really open up after only a few hours in the game. It can vary from finding a photograph to a multi-stage set of levers all linked up to a series of moving environmental parts. Personally, I tended to enjoy puzzles that leaned into exploration rather than environmental mechanics, but this variety is a credit to the amount of different things Galaxyland has going on at once. Anyhow, even if you do get through the next doorway, you’ll likely find something big and nasty waiting behind it.
Combat and Content
Combat is, of course, core to this, mixing in ideas from classic turn-based systems like Chrono Trigger alongside a few twists of its own. A whole host of familiar ideas are here. Combat never feels obtuse or difficult to understand. Characters have Action Points, SP, and HP. These are all obviously telegraphed on screen and used to stay alive, summon creatures, attack, or use abilities. The tutorial does a solid job of introducing this, and Galaxyland keeps things interesting by drip-feeding in new ideas and mechanics as you progress. Elemental damage, equipment stats, and party member levels don’t make an impact early on but Doug is almost instantly able to start scanning enemies and capturing wildlife that can be summoned into battle. Choosing summons and particular abilities can change the course of a battle, just as different boss battles bring new mechanics to the game. Whether that’s huge pig gangsters with laser eyes or a walking tank bot of death, there are numerous challenges and a range of applicable pets and powers that could impact on your survival.. Once the combat is over and the chiptune battle music fades out, you’ll find loot. Loot, like many games opens up access to shops, potions, and crafting and gear. None of these surprises but do a solid job of keeping the player progression curve heading up and to the right, without getting lost in the minutia of events. This all makes combat easily accessible and continuously entertaining over the tens of hours that you’ll spend exploring and escaping your prison planet.
Brilliant Balance
Behind the welcoming locals, the wild variety of ideas, and even the ship you space jack there’s a vast conspiracy and a wonderfully written piece. The cinematic feel of this story is genuinely entertaining. Heading into the wilderness, meeting your overlords for the first time, sneaking through a blood-soaked space station corridor, or watching Martybot having an existential crisis during a prison breakout. While I’d have expected Enright to play this all for laughs, there are unexpected turns that keep the tone balanced. It’s almost like somebody watched Spielberg and just got the memo.
Get Beyond Galaxyland is a whole smorgasbord of nostalgic ideas that somehow doesn’t end up being a mess. It’s visually ambitious, taking a pixel art aesthetic and giving it cinematic scope without losing the essence of the idea. It wraps in writing and ideas that draw on Spielberg, Star Wars, and even a bit of Douglas Adams writing with a light-balanced tone that navigates dark turns and silly situations. Even in among all this, game mechanics stay true to the side-scrolling platformers of old, while throwing in bits of Pokémon, Final Fantasy, System Shock, and more, and it still feels original. Beyond Galaxyland is an impressive outing that I adored. Maybe it’s nostalgia, or maybe this really is worth your time. Go save Earth on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch. Find out how on the official website.
