Instead of playing as a space bounty hunter or the offspring of a vampire, Lootbox Lyft+ puts players in control of a rolling ball. It takes the classic Metroid formula to a new height, specifically as the game begins since the player doesn’t have the ability to move or jump.

In time, not only will the ball be given the ability to move, but also jump, wall jump, double jump, shrink, and eventually teleport. Like any good Metroid-style game, the environment encourages exploration. However, unlike Samus or Alucard, there is no offensive capabilities so players will spend the entire quest avoiding problems instead of tackling them. 

Although a map will be unlocked an hour into the campaign, it isn’t detailed and there is no indicator on where to go next.  While you can pretty much only go one way in the front half of the game, the player is left to wander in the back half, resulting in tedium and wasted time. Sure, you might find a secret gold coin along the way, currency used to unlock hat that grant slight buffs, but finding the necessary path to progress can be annoying especially if you are a player short on patience.

The good news is, the game sort of looks the other if you want to cheat the system. The menu system contains some toggle switches if you are having difficulty or just want to play the game in a new way. For example, feel free to turn on invincibility from water if you are having trouble with that one precision platforming spot. My personal recommendation is to activate the infinite jump option which essentially allows the player to fly around the map at will. Even with these cheat options, the player can only go so far as the game requires other abilities that are not toggleable with a menu option.

It also feels like you are playing as a rolling marble. Meaning, movement is accurate but it is not precise. Jumps are slightly weighted in a weird way, wall jumps sometimes don’t feel right especially when sliding down, and you can’t exactly stop on a dime. Although it is never out of control, it can be more frustrating that desired since reaching that next checkpoint is usually an intense gauntlet of obstacles. The gameplay loop is usually unlock an ability, use that ability to escape, complete a long trial of obstacles, then collect a new power up, then repeat. There are times when the player jumps through a portal to collect a new power, but then all other powers are temporarily put on pause. It is a nice change of pace but found myself dying accidentally as I was used to having a wall jump, for example.

Lootbox Lyfe+ isn’t the best Metroid-like and doesn’t come fully recommended.  It isn’t terrible but the lack of direction can cause frustration and the generic character design doesn’t feel memorable. While not bad, there are better, recently released indie titles that make better use of the Metroid formula. 

Not As Good As: Trash Quest

Also Play: Cosmos Bit

About On Part With: Catmaze

By: Zachary Gasiorowski, Editor in Chief myGamer.com

Twitter: @ZackGaz

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