Joon Shining is a golf-style platform game with additional control elements. Combining traditional golf and minigolf with elements of a puzzle platformer, it evolves the golfing formula by adding magic and many different mechanics to level up.
Studio Orchid of Redemption has just released their magic platform game, Joon Shining, after 2 years in Steam Early Access. This game is one of the first of many Australian games that will hopefully be noticed in 2023.
But before reading the review, watch the excellent and atmospheric trailer for this game:
Playing as a young sorcerer, you have been tasked with saving a dodo, but an unusual task… But who has to? And to achieve this, you need to hit the eggs, which are a spirit balls, into the nest, as a result of which a new dodo will hatch. Yes, our sorcerer is not one of the most common. In our case, our young wizard does not come up with anything better than throwing them up with the help of magic and throwing them from side to side. And so Golf with Magic was invented.
It’s a very different take on 2D golf. If you’re up for the challenge, you can discover a unique and rewarding experience when you succeed and get used to our hero’s mechanics and abilities.
In the game, the world is divided into levels, and as you progress, new mechanics and difficulties are added, such as speeding up or slowing down the ball. And with each level, new mechanics will be waiting for us, such as bubbles that make the ball bounce or walls that can only go in one direction, so don’t expect an easy adventure. And not to mention the fact that the game has collectible items that, when collected, open access to additional levels, which are certainly not easy.
The music and background set the tone, but obstacles are encountered at every stage, and the levels get bigger and bigger. Gradually you begin to learn how to use the means of the environment to achieve your goals and achieve great results because, in the end, you will have statistics on how quickly you completed the level. And yes, during a sword strike, you can actively manage additional platforms, for example, creating them or, conversely, removing them to create new passage options. As you progress through the eight proposed worlds, you will learn all this and much more, so it should be interesting.
The game looks quirky and attractive. Surprisingly, a cute indie platformer, but inside it is golf for lovers of puzzles and perfectionists, and complexities. The game requires not only carefully thought out strikes, but also real-time player action for the best result, almost any mistake in the balance will force you to repeat the entire level from the beginning, and so on until you achieve the ideal.
Here’s what awaits us:
- 20+ hours of gameplay
- 100+ levels
- 100 collectibles to discover – each a self-contained micro-puzzle
- Challenging gameplay and a super-high skill ceiling for expert players going for a gold rank in every level
- A unique contrasting of serene atmospheres against focused-precision gameplay
- Incredible and unique soundtrack
In Joon Shining, it all comes down to looking at your surroundings and paying attention to what you see and how you can influence in your favor. Solving puzzles and game levels is interesting and addictive and most importantly enjoyable. During this game, I immediately remembered why Angry Birds but most of all Golfing Over It, especially in moments when you don’t quite understand how to get through this or that place, or when you hit a little harder.
You can learn more about Joon Shining on its Steam page. You can try out the game’s demo for free or purchase a copy for $19.99 for the base game or $28.78 for the game and the OST.
We received a PC key from PR for our review.
