Poi (video game)

Last updated

Poi
Poi game header.jpg
Steam capsule image featuring the two protagonists
Developer(s) PolyKid
Publisher(s) PolyKid
Alliance Digital Media (NS)
Director(s)
  • Paul Ewers
  • Ben Gable
Artist(s) David Hattori
Composer(s) Lyndon Holland
Engine Unity
Platform(s)
ReleaseLinux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
  • WW: February 1, 2017
PlayStation 4, Xbox One
  • WW: June 27, 2017
Nintendo Switch
  • WW: October 23, 2017
Genre(s) 3D platformer
Mode(s) Single-player

Poi is an independent 3D platform game released on Linux, macOS and Microsoft Windows via Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Poi was the first game developed by PolyKid, an independent studio made up of graduates from the DigiPen Institute of Technology. Following an unsuccessful Kickstarter campaign in August 2015, the game was released via Steam Early Access the following November and remained in active development until a finished version was released in February 2017, followed by home console ports later that year.

Contents

Gameplay

Poi follows a pair of orphaned twin children, a boy and a girl, who are invited by an older adventurer known as the Master Explorer to join the crew of his flying airship in his quest to find a mystical treasure known as the Milky Way Globe. Having lost his collection of valuable Explorer Medallions after they were scattered during a violent storm, the Master Explorer requests the twins help retrieve them along the way. The player can choose to play as either the boy or the girl and can switch between the two while on the airship, though their abilities are identical. The player characters can run, jump, roll, swim, climb specific surfaces, double jump, cross tightropes, wall jump, and glide using a parasail to help them traverse the environment. The player characters have no physical attacks, and can only defeat enemies by jumping on them or kicking specific objects at them. [1]

The sky surrounding the Master Explorer's airship acts as the central hub, from which the player can access any of the game's worlds. There are four main worlds, each one a closed environment that the player can explore at their own pace. Progression is similar to Super Mario 64 : when the player enters a world, they are presented with a task to complete such as gathering coins or keys, finishing an obstacle course, or defeating a boss, among others. Completing one of these tasks will grant the player an Explorer Medallion and return them to the hub world to choose their next destination. [2] A certain number of Explorer Medallions are required to unlock each new world, with a total of 101 Explorer Medallions available to collect in the game. While exploring a world, the player can pick up coins that act as in-game currency and hearts that restore their character's health. Checkpoints are placed throughout each world; if the player character runs out of health, they lose any coins they have collected in that world and their progress is reset back to the last checkpoint they touched. Each world also contains many other collectibles to find, including points of interest on the map, fossils to be excavated, and extra costumes that change the player characters' appearance. [1]

The player can use the coins they collect in the worlds to purchase Explorer Tools from the Master Explorer. Some of these tools are passive upgrades that enhance the player characters, such as a magnet to draw in coins from further away or an extra heart to increase the characters' maximum health; others are items that the player can equip and use, including a shovel to dig up fossils and a camera to take photographs. Coins can also be exchanged with a traveling merchant for access to challenge stages that will grant the player additional Explorer Medallions upon completion. [3] As the player collects Explorer Medallions and completes certain tasks, the sky around the airship will populate with landmasses containing entrances to smaller bonus worlds and minigames, as well as other non-player characters to interact with. These characters will reward the player with additional Explorer Medallions for completing extra objectives or finding each world's bonus collectibles, such as an archaeologist searching for fossils or another adventurer in need of golden gears to repair her airship. [1] Completing the game unlocks a more difficult New Game Plus mode, which mirrors the game's worlds and severely limits the player character's health. [2]

Development

Poi was the first game developed by PolyKid, a small independent studio founded by DigiPen Institute of Technology graduates Paul Ewers and Ben Gable. The two sought to create a new 3D platformer that evoked the spirit of classic entries in the genre such as Super Mario 64 , Banjo-Kazooie , and Super Mario Sunshine . The game was first announced in June 2015 for release on Microsoft Windows and Wii U, alongside plans for a Kickstarter campaign to help fund its development. [4] The campaign launched on August 4, 2015, with a target goal of $80,000, [5] but ultimately proved unsuccessful, raising only $27,236. [6] However, PolyKid maintained that development on the game would continue in spite of the campaign's failure. [7]

On November 6, 2015, Poi was released via the Steam Early Access service. [8] PolyKid continued active development on the game over the following year, updating the early access build as progress was made. The game ultimately left Early Access and was officially released via Steam on February 1, 2017. [2] Ports of the game for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One were released digitally on June 27, 2017. A port for the Nintendo Switch published by Alliance Digital Media, dubbed the "Explorer Edition", received a digital and physical release on October 23, 2017. [9] This version includes optional motion control support, as well as new character costume pieces and a digital art book. [1]

Reception

The Nintendo Switch version of Poi received an average score of 65/100 from review aggregator Metacritic, indicating mixed reception. [10] Destructoid called the game "a competent love letter to the 3D Mario games we love that manages to give players a nice taste of nostalgia while still having its own charm." [2] Nintendo World Report similarly praised the gameplay and feel of the game, but lamented that it often felt derivative of the previous 3D Super Mario titles it was inspired by, drawing direct comparisons between various elements in Poi and Super Mario 64. [11] Nintendo Life praised the breadth of content and constant influx of new things to do, but criticized the repetition of some of the game's tasks as well as the occasional imprecision of the controls. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Platformer</span> Video game genre

A platformer is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are characterized by levels that consist of uneven terrain and suspended platforms of varying height that require jumping and climbing to traverse. Other acrobatic maneuvers may factor into the gameplay, such as swinging from vines or grappling hooks, jumping off walls, air dashing, gliding through the air, being shot from cannons, using jet packs, or bouncing from springboards or trampolines. Games where jumping is automated completely, such as 3D games in The Legend of Zelda series, fall outside of the category.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mario</span> Video game character

Mario is a character created by the Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the Mario franchise and the mascot of the Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario is an Italian plumber who resides in the Mushroom Kingdom with his younger twin brother, Luigi. Their adventures generally center on rescuing Princess Peach from the villain Bowser while using power-ups that give them different abilities.

<i>Yoshis Island</i> 1995 video game

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island is a 1995 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The player controls Yoshi, a friendly dinosaur, on a quest to reunite baby Mario with his brother Luigi, who has been kidnapped by Kamek. As a Super Mario series platformer, Yoshi runs and jumps to reach the end of the level while solving puzzles and collecting items with Mario's help. The game has a hand-drawn aesthetic and was the first in the franchise to have Yoshi as its main character, where it introduces his signature flutter jump and egg spawning abilities.

<i>Super Mario RPG</i> 1996 video game

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars is a role-playing video game developed by Square and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1996. It was the final Mario game published for the SNES. The game was directed by Chihiro Fujioka and Yoshihiko Maekawa, produced by Shigeru Miyamoto, and scored by Yoko Shimomura.

<i>Super Mario 64</i> 1996 video game

Super Mario 64 is a platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan and North America in 1996 and PAL regions in 1997. It is the first Super Mario game to feature 3D gameplay, combining traditional Super Mario gameplay, visual style, and characters in a large open world. In the game, Bowser, the primary antagonist of the Super Mario franchise, invades Princess Peach's castle and hides the castle's sources of protection, the Power Stars, in many different worlds inside magical paintings. As Mario, the player collects Power Stars to unlock enough of Princess Peach's castle to get to Bowser and rescue Princess Peach.

<i>Super Mario Sunshine</i> 2002 video game

Super Mario Sunshine is a 2002 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. It is the second 3D game in the Super Mario series, following Super Mario 64 (1996). The game was directed by Yoshiaki Koizumi and Kenta Usui, produced by series creators Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka, written by Makoto Wada, and scored by Koji Kondo and Shinobu Tanaka.

<i>Bubsy</i> Series of platforming video games

Bubsy is a series of platforming video games created by Michael Berlyn and developed and published by Accolade. The games star an anthropomorphic bobcat named Bubsy, a character that takes inspiration from Super Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog. The games were originally released for the Super NES, Mega Drive/Genesis, Game Boy, Jaguar, PC and PlayStation during the 1990s.

<i>New Super Mario Bros.</i> 2006 video game

New Super Mario Bros. is a 2006 platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. It was first released in May 2006 in North America and Japan, and in PAL regions in June 2006. It is the first installment in the New Super Mario Bros. subseries of the Super Mario franchise, and follows Mario as he fights his way through Bowser's henchmen to rescue Princess Peach. Mario has access to several old and new power-ups that help him complete his quest, including the Super Mushroom, the Fire Flower, and the Super Star, each giving him unique abilities. While traveling through eight worlds with more than 80 levels, Mario must defeat Bowser Jr. and Bowser before saving Princess Peach.

<i>Super Mario</i> Video game series

Super Mario is a platform game series created by Nintendo starring their mascot, Mario. It is the central series of the greater Mario franchise. At least one Super Mario game has been released for every major Nintendo video game console. There are more than 20 games in the series.

<i>Mario</i> (franchise) Video game franchise

Mario is a Japanese multimedia franchise created by Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto for video game company Nintendo which produces and publishes its installments. Starring the titular Italian plumber Mario, it is primarily a video game franchise, but has extended to other forms of media, including television series, comic books, a 1993 feature film, a 2023 animated film and theme park attractions. The series' first installment was 1983's Mario Bros., although Mario had made his first appearance in 1981's arcade game Donkey Kong, and had already been featured in several games of the Donkey Kong and Game & Watch series. The Mario games have been developed by a wide variety of developers including Nintendo, Hudson Soft, and AlphaDream. Mario games have been released almost exclusively for Nintendo's various video game consoles and handhelds, from the third generation onward.

<i>New Super Mario Bros. 2</i> 2012 video game

New Super Mario Bros. 2 is a 2D side-scrolling platform video game in the New Super Mario Bros. series developed by Nintendo EAD Group No. 4 and published by Nintendo for its Nintendo 3DS handheld video game console, being released first in Japan on July 28, 2012. It is a direct sequel to the 2006 Nintendo DS game New Super Mario Bros. and is the first Nintendo-published game to be released simultaneously in both downloadable and physical forms.

<i>Super Mario 3D World</i> 2013 video game

Super Mario 3D World is a platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U in 2013. It is the sixth original 3D platform game in the Super Mario series and the sequel to Super Mario 3D Land (2011) for the Nintendo 3DS.

<i>Shovel Knight</i> 2014 video game

Shovel Knight is a platform video game developed and published by Yacht Club Games. Development was crowdfunded and the game was released for Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, and Windows in June 2014. It was ported to OS X and Linux in September 2014, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and Xbox One in April 2015, Amazon Fire TV in September 2015, and Nintendo Switch in March 2017. Shovel Knight is inspired by gameplay and graphics of platformer games developed for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

<i>A Hat in Time</i> 2017 video game

A Hat in Time is a platform game developed by Danish game studio Gears for Breakfast and published by Humble Bundle. The game was developed using Unreal Engine 3 and funded through a Kickstarter campaign, which nearly doubled its fundraising goals within its first two days. The game was self-published for macOS and Windows in October 2017, and by Humble Bundle for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles two months later. A version for the Nintendo Switch was released in October 2019.

<i>Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker</i> 2014 video game

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is a 2014 action puzzle video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U. The game was re-released for the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS in 2018 with additional content. It is a spin-off of the Super Mario series and a part of the larger Mario franchise. The game stars Captain Toad and Toadette as they complete levels and save each other from the antagonist Wingo. Each level is contained within a miniature diorama-like environment that requires puzzle-solving and platforming challenges to complete. The player also uses the Wii U GamePad to rotate the camera and reveal new information and interact with the environment.

<i>Yooka-Laylee</i> 2017 video game

Yooka-Laylee is a platform game published by Team17 in 2017 for Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, followed by a version for Amazon Luna in October 2020. Developed by Playtonic Games, a group of former key personnel from Rare, Yooka-Laylee is a spiritual successor to the Banjo-Kazooie series released for the Nintendo 64 nearly 20 years prior. After years of planning to develop a new game, Playtonic Games initiated a Kickstarter campaign that attracted significant media coverage and raised a record-breaking sum of over £2 million. The game follows chameleon Yooka and bat Laylee on their quest to retrieve a magical book from an evil corporation.

<i>Super Mario Odyssey</i> 2017 video game

Super Mario Odyssey is a 2017 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. An entry in the Super Mario series, it follows Mario and his new ally Cappy—a sentient hat that allows Mario to control other characters and objects—as they journey across various kingdoms to save Princess Peach from his nemesis Bowser's plans of forced marriage. In contrast to the linear gameplay of prior entries, the game returns to the primarily open-ended, 3D platform gameplay featured in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine.

<i>Bubsy: Paws on Fire!</i> 2019 video game

Bubsy: Paws on Fire! is a platform video game developed by Choice Provisions and published by UFO Interactive Games under the Accolade brand. The game was released for PlayStation 4 and Windows on May 16, 2019. The Nintendo Switch port was released on August 29, 2019. The game is the sixth entry in the Bubsy series.

<i>Super Mario Maker 2</i> 2019 video game

Super Mario Maker 2 is a 2019 side-scrolling platform game and level creation system developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the sequel to Super Mario Maker and was released worldwide on June 28, 2019. The gameplay is largely retained from that of its predecessor, in which players create their own custom courses using assets from various games across the Super Mario franchise and share them online. Super Mario Maker 2 introduces new features and course assets, including a single player story mode and new level assets based on Super Mario 3D World.

<i>Bowsers Fury</i> 2021 video game

Bowser's Fury is a 2021 platform game bundled in with the Nintendo Switch release of Super Mario 3D World, titled Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury. The player controls Mario through Lake Lapcat to complete challenges and collect items to dispel a black sludge that is infecting the land and free Bowser from its control. Bowser's Fury's gameplay is based on Super Mario 3D World.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Craddock, Ryan (October 28, 2017). "Poi: Explorer Edition Review (Switch)". Nintendo Life . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Whitaker, Jed (March 17, 2017). "Review: Poi". Destructoid . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  3. ↑ Riendeau, Danielle (August 21, 2015). "Poi is a new platformer inspired by Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie". Polygon . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  4. ↑ McFerran, Damien (August 4, 2015). "PolyKid's Poi Hits Kickstarter, $80,000 Needed To Bring It To Wii U". Nintendo Life . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  5. ↑ Doolan, Liam (June 10, 2015). "PolyKid's Indie 3D Platformer Poi Is Coming To Wii U". Nintendo Life . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  6. ↑ PolyKid (August 4, 2015). "Poi - A 3D Adventure Platformer by PolyKid". Kickstarter. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  7. ↑ PolyKid (September 3, 2015). "Poi - A 3D Adventure Platformer by PolyKid >> The Road Ahead". Kickstarter. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  8. ↑ Sykes, Tom (November 8, 2015). "3D Platformer Poi leaps onto Steam Early Access". PC Gamer . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  9. ↑ Carter, Chris (June 6, 2017). "Charming platformer Poi is coming to the Switch". Destructoid. Archived from the original on June 10, 2017. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  10. 1 2 "Poi: Explorer Edition for Nintendo Switch Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  11. 1 2 Rairdin, John (November 4, 2017). "Poi: Explorer Edition Review (Switch)". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.