Forget about No Man’s Sky; give me more Joe Danger games! Joke aside, both these games have two things in common: they’re both made by the same studio, and they’re great. Unlike No Man’s Sky, which got off to a rocky start, Joe Danger was generally well-received by critics and players alike.
Launched back in 2010 on PlayStation 3, Joe Danger landed on iOS three years later, which Android users have finally got to play the game five years after the game’s initial release on Sony’s gaming platform.
Last month, developer Hello Games re-released Joe Danger after receiving a heartfelt letter from a fan. Because of the many changes Apple has done to iOS since almost 10 years ago, Joe Danger would no longer run on modern devices, which is why Hello Games had to rebuild the game and modernize it.
Joe Danger Infinity is the sequel that made it to iOS in 2014 and was remastered, just like the original, and re-released late last month.
As a side-scrolling game with racing and platformer elements, Joe Danger has a very addictive gameplay loop, but that’s understandable considering that it seems to draw inspiration from iconic franchises like Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog.
Photo: autoevolution
In Joe Danger, you play as a goofy motorbike stuntman, at least in the beginning. Each level is designed with one goal in mind: to have fun. Although the first several levels are pretty easy, as you progress, they become more challenging, yet not to the point that you don’t want to replay them to achieve all goals.
Speaking of goals, you’re not really tied to any of them, so even if you perform badly in a level, you can still move on to the next. Still, all those “stars” in a level or achieving “perfect” scores on every jump or duck is going to eventually reward you with a bonus level.
There’s a little bit of a story around Joe Danger Infinity, which is both goofy and charming at the same time. The protagonist, Joe Danger, is one of the many toys brought to life in a magic gumball machine.
In Joe Danger Infinity, there are at least two dozen other characters that you can play with, assuming you manage to unlock them. Characters are grouped in teams (i.e., Team Nasty, Team Toy, etc.), and the best thing about this is that you can unlock them randomly at any time during the game.
Every time you get a gumball ticket from one of the bonus levels, you get a chance to unlock one of the other characters from King Gumball. Worst case scenario, you get a lot of gold coins. Just like Joe Danger, the other characters must complete stunts across environments while driving various vehicles.
Photo: autoevolution
Yes, the game has more than just Joe Danger’s famous motorbike. In fact, there are around 20 vehicles to choose from in Joe Danger Infinity, including cars, airplanes, a tank, and even a rocket. Some of these characters offer score boosts, but you’re not supposed to be concerned with that if you’re not planning to compare your scores with your friends.
Despite the fact that the remastered version of Joe Danger Infinity features ProMotion support, it’s a joy to just play the game with touch controls, which have been improved considerably. There’s no input lag. Everything is very responsive, so every time you touch the display, something will happen almost instantaneously.
Although levels in Joe Danger Infinity are rather short, there’s a lot happening, so you’ll always have to stay with one eye on the vehicle and another on the road ahead. You don’t want to fail a perfect jump or duck, nor miss a star or other collectible required for a higher score.
Conclusion
Joe Danger Infinity is more than anything else a passion project. Although it could stand on its own even after all these years, the remastered version brings the visuals and controls up to date. Guiding Joe Danger & Co. on various tracks, performing stunts, and achieving flawless scores has never been more enjoyable.
If you haven’t played any of the Joe Danger games, there’s never been a better time to pick them up and give them a try. They’re not on Apple Arcade, but for just $2, you’ll get many hours of pure joy.
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