The era of Behemoth games is one I’ll never forget. Games like Alien Hominid and Castle Crashers dominated my free time. From the moment I saw Big Helmet Heroes, I knew what they were aiming for. With beautiful visuals, fantastic animations, and enough variety to shake a stick, sword, or whatever else at? Big Helmet Heroes is the perfect way to fill the void left behind by its forebearers while being unique enough to earn a spot at the top of the list of “Best games to play with your friends.”

If ‘Castle Crashers’ Ever Got Turned Into a Dreamworks Movie, It’d Look Like ‘Big Helmet Heroes’
The first thing I noticed from the start is how stunning Big Helmet Heroes is. Not only is it visually fantastic, it’s got tons of personality in its classes, characters, and enemies. One thing that a lot of beat-’em-ups forget is that personality goes hand in hand with excellent gameplay, and Big Helmet Heroes has heaps of both. Depending on the characters I would pick before embarking on a mission, I would be put in one of four classes.
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The Warrior is a basic sword and shield class. The Rogue is fast and furious — but sometimes felt like I was cheating while playing as them. The Monk was likely my favorite class of them all, with a great balance of power and speed. And the Brute: a massive monster of a tank that could also deal devastating damage. Before heading out on a mission, I could select two characters to bring with me, swapping them out on the fly for maximum range and damage.
Each of these characters also has unique looks and an Ultimate. While two characters like Tornado and Shepard may play the same, their Ultimate Attacks couldn’t be any more different. This encouraged me to not only search high and low for more unlockable characters throughout my playthrough but also to experiment. The higher the combo I could land, the faster my gauge would charge, and the more devastation I could unleash.

Multiplayer Mayhem, As Long As You’re In The Same Room Together
Couch co-op always feels like something left in the past. Even now, plenty of games require multiple copies and an internet connection to enjoy with our friends. Big Helmet Heroes lacks an online multiplayer mode, and it’s something I do wish to see in the future. But it does come with couch co-op, and it’s just as glorious as one may imagine.
I gathered up my wife and buzzed through a few levels together. Dropping the difficulty to Easy, she was able to pick up and play Big Helmet Heroes without much of a thought at all. If you want to make things more interesting, crank up the difficulty and start experimenting with combos and hit numbers. Big Helmet Heroes is very approachable for players of all skill levels, something I greatly appreciate.
But finding a game to play with my wife is something I’ll always enjoy, and Big Helmet Heroes may become a new weekend favorite. These types of games are not typically her favorite thing to play. She’d rather spend her time decorating houses (with me, of course). But she was immediately intrigued when she saw how the game looked, and wanted to give it a try.

Exciting Bosses Keep ‘Big Helmet Heroes’ Feeling Fresh Throughout a Playthrough
Repetition is always one of the biggest fears I have when it comes to playing a game like this. If variety isn’t a thing, it becomes a mindless cycle of hitting attacks until you win. Nobody likes a game like that. Thankfully, every stage in Big Helmet Heroes feels fresh enough to want to explore and see what it has to offer. Plus, the combo system here makes combat encounters quite exciting all around.
Grabbing a grunt and throwing them off of a bridge, then snagging whatever weird items I could find around the stage to wreck the rest of their crew, was always a blast. Even during longer play sessions, I didn’t want to put Big Helmet Heroes down. And half of the fun came from figuring out Boss gimmicks and how I could put them into the ground for good.
The controls are also incredibly tight and responsive, something that is necessary for a game such as this. I never found myself getting into a tussle without the game singing whenever I pressed buttons on my controller. Even managing a battle against massive waves of monsters, I could quickly navigate through the crowd with ease. Reflexes mean nothing if the game can’t keep up, and Big Helmet Heroes happily obliged.

‘Big Helmet Heroes’ Is Just a Blast To Play, Solo or With A Friend
Big Helmet Heroes is a joyful romp. I was genuinely shocked to see how much fun I had, and regardless of the heroes I picked, I was always in for something new and exciting. Even with just four classes, each of these massive cranium crusaders felt unique enough to justify being in the game. Plus, the amount of replayability you get from going through stages again with a friend is massive.
I do hope that there is an eventual online multiplayer mode in development. But even without that feature, Big Helmet Heroes is one of the most charming beat-’em-ups I’ve ever gotten to play. It has plenty of style and panache, looks and runs great to boot, and just kept a smile on my face throughout my playthrough.
As someone who grew up playing the everliving life out of Castle Crashers, don’t overlook this one. It’s different enough not to fully replace the love of your life, but it’s an excellent addition to the “adorable knights beating the crap out of everything they encounter” genre titles like Castle Crashers popularized. It works fantastic in this 2.5D style, and I’m surprised nobody has really tried this before.
Verdict: Highly Recommended
Big Helmet Heroes will be available on February 6, 2025, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. A code was provided by the publisher for the sake of review. Reviewed on PC.
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