‘Antonblast’ Is a Blast to the Senses in the Greatest Way Possible (Review)

With Nintendo seemingly forgetting that they own the intellectual rights to the Wario Land franchise, many developers have begun their pilgrimage to make the greatest successor to the series. I think Wario Land 4 is simply the pinnacle of platforming perfection. Nothing Nintendo has released since its magnum opus has come close. Games like Pizza Tower encapsulate that lightning in a bottle while adding some flair. But, if I had to put my money where my mouth is? I would say Dynamite Anton’s adventures in Antonblast may be the closest we’ll get to a proper Wario Land 5. If there is only one platformer to pick up in 2024, it needs to be this one.

I Have a Mouth and I Must Scream

Dynamite Anton may just be the angriest video game character I’ve ever met. A Nintendo character at heart with a vocabulary that would make anyone from The Sopranos blush, he’s pissed off. And for good reason. Satan himself takes all of his Spirits. It was my job to control the titular Anton and blast through numerous stages to take these Spirits back. Pretty straightforward platforming logic, right? Well, between the carefully crafted stages — littered to the brim with secrets — alternate paths that would make Sonic faint, and the sheer amount of anxiety-inducing blasts happening on the screen, it was love at first sight.

Antonblast is a bombastic game in every literal sense of the word. Throughout my roughly eight hours of playtime, I recall only a few moments when my screen wasn’t filled with explosions. Challenging tech rewarded me for learning it and punished me for forgetting it existed. Using Anton’s clutch ability allowed me to propel myself forward at blistering speeds, eliminating enemies that would get in my way. But, even when I had a chance to slow down, I constantly pushed myself harder to get through these incredibly crafted stages.

Antonblast is a deceptively fast platformer, requiring pixel-perfect skills to navigate some of its more intimidating courses. From the first level, where I was exploring Boiler City, I knew I was in for something I had never experienced before. It’s exhilarating, challenging, and most importantly? Incredibly fun.

It’s been a long time since I’ve played a platformer that demanded the level of technical skill that the later levels of Antonblast required. These levels had me locking in just as much as I needed to when I tried to unlock “The Guy” in Super Meat Boy.

Tricky Boss Fights Offer an Excellent Challenge

What’s a good platformer without boss fights, though? Antonblast offers battles in bunches. They pushed my knowledge of the available movement tech to its limits, demanding me to think outside of the box. There were plenty of times I got too impatient and paid the price. But it gave me a fresh perspective to try again next time.

Every boss in Antonblast featured a great gimmick that never felt unfair. Some bosses in other platforming games were made simply to punish you. The only time I found myself being punished here was when I wasn’t using every tool at my disposal appropriately. It was great not being able to mindlessly rush into a boss room, jump on their head three times, and move on to the next stage.

I needed to take everything I had learned from the levels prior and put them to work. Otherwise, I had my butt handed to me. Holding myself accountable, I had to push harder than I’ve had to in years in the platforming genre to bring these big baddies to their knees. And while the bosses were some of the greatest aspects of the game, the general sound design and standard stages offered even more to this robust and impressive package.

‘Antonblast’ Has Level and Sound Design That Should Make the Big Boys Sweat

Antonblast is a feast for the senses. Visually, it’s a bombardment of explosions, classic animation tropes, and stretchy, unique characters. The sound design, on the other hand, is enough to make any fan of early ’90s Cartoon Network-era animation drool. This whole project feels like a dream for anyone who grew up experiencing that madcap era of animation.

There is always something happening in the world of Antonblast. My ears will likely never recover from the sheer number of sound effects that were always being blasted into them. And honestly? I’m better for it — from the soundtrack to the general utilization of sound effects, Antonblast feels like the best type of fever dream. The music perfectly matches the stages, making every exhilarating second of motion feel fantastic. Hearing classic sound effects that I had once heard in shows like Cow and Chicken put a smile on my face every time. And even the sound from The Six Million Dollar Man makes an unexpected appearance.

It’s an audio-visual treat, made only better by the incredibly well-designed stages. During my early hours, I’ll admit some stages felt a little too busy. After learning what made Antonblast tick, however, I found myself careening through stages without a care in the world. Searching for secrets made every stage even more exciting, and while I still have plenty of secrets to go, I won’t complain about having to revisit any of them.

Honestly, ‘Antonblast’ Blew Me Away More Than I Ever Expected

While the timer in Antonblast put my playtime at a cool 6 hours, my Steam Profile knows that’s not correct. It took me about 8.5 hours before I finally rolled credits on this one. Exploring stages once again after learning new movement tech, battling against bosses, and revisiting a particularly hellish stage ensured my time was well spent.

Several updates that rolled out during the review period squashed any bugs I encountered. Antonblast already felt polished in a way many games fail to ever reach, but the quick work of the development team made sure I was in for the time of my life.

While I’ve been watching Antonblast grow over the years, I never expected it to charm me the way it did. It always looked solid, but the final product was well beyond what I could have imagined. Incredibly tight controls paired with sublime level design make Antonblast a must-play for anyone remotely interested in it. Mix that with a captivating art style and a phenomenal soundtrack, and you’ve got a runner for an all-time great.

The team at Summitsphere should be proud of what they’ve created here. Antonblast feels like a generational hit. It kicked my ass nearly every step of the journey, but you know what? I wouldn’t change a single thing about it. Antonblast is a phenomenal entry into the platformer genre and deserves your attention.

Verdict: Highly Recommended

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Antonblast will be available on December 3, 2024, on PC and Nintendo Switch. A code was provided by the publisher for the sake of review. Reviewed on PC.