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Enchanted Portals

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Enchanted Portals
Developer(s)Xixo Games Studio
Publisher(s)Xixo Games Studio
EngineUnreal Engine 4
Platform(s)
Release
September 5, 2023
  • Windows
  • September 5, 2023
  • PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
  • September 8, 2023
  • PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
  • November 1, 2023
Genre(s)Run and gun
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Enchanted Portals is a platform video game developed and published by Xixo Games Studio. It was released on September 5, 2023, for Microsoft Windows, September 8, 2023, for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, and November 1 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. The game drew comparisons to the 2017 platformer Cuphead, with whom it shares its gameplay and visual style,[1][2] and received largely negative reviews.

Gameplay

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Enchanted Portals is a 2D platformer in which players take the role of Bobby and Penny, rookie wizards stuck between dimensions after an accident involving a magic book.[3] The game can be played either alone or cooperatively. Enchanted Portals consists of platforming stages broken up by boss fights, with players being able to utilize various magical power-ups to help them overcome challenges. These power-ups include three kinds of spell attacks, a protective bubble to block an attack, and the ability to swipe at certain obstacles with the playable character's wand. Some boss levels also add certain changes in the gameplay or setting.

Plot

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While Bobby and Penny are doing housework, the former accidentally knocks a book off of a shelf. When the two look at it, they see instructions for creating a portal and follow the steps to make one. However, the portal that Bobby and Penny create ends up sucking the two inside of it, along with their pet cat and the magic book, which soon becomes alive.

Bobby and Penny explore a variety of different worlds, including a forest with a haunted hotel, a spaceship piloted by a cyborg cow, an island with a temple, a castle with frogs, and a town populated by roosters. While making it through all of these dimensions, they fight the worlds' hostile inhabitants and look for the sentient magic book.

After making it through every world, Bobby and Penny end up in a wormhole, where the magic book tries to kill the two with his spells. After Bobby and Penny finally defeat the magic book in battle, they return home right when an older wizard (presumably their caretaker) arrives. Later, the magic book tells another book (most likely his father) about what Bobby and Penny did to him, hinting that the latter book might seek retribution against the two wizards.

Development

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In October 2019, Xixo Games Studio, a Spanish two-person development team, announced that they were planning to fund Enchanted Portals via a Kickstarter campaign. After a delay due to negotiations with a prospective publisher,[4] the campaign was launched in 2020.[5] The Kickstarter failed to meet its €120,000 goal.

Enchanted Portals was released on September 5, 2023, for Windows via Steam and the Epic Games Store, and three days later for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S. A physical release of the PlayStation 5 version referred to as the Tales Edition was released on September 29.[6][7] The game was released on the Nintendo Switch on November 1, 2023.

Reception

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A trailer for the game was released on YouTube and Twitter on October 8, 2019. Viewers negatively compared the game to its inspiration, Cuphead.[10]

Upon release, Enchanted Portals received a number of negative reviews, with review aggregator Metacritic summarizing the critical reception of the PlayStation 5 version as "generally unfavorable".[8] Jaz Sagoo of COGconnected criticised the game's imprecise controls, uneven difficulty, lack of sound design, and sometimes inconsistent aesthetics, but noted that it almost captures the 1930s art style overall.[11] Writing for WellPlayed, Kieran Stockton voiced similar criticisms, calling the game an "Aldi-style mimicry of Cuphead" and giving it a "poor" rating overall.[12] Joey Rambles of Cultured Vultures reviewed the game more favourably after having played a pre-release demo and stated that Enchanted Portals was frustrating but also rewarding,[13] but revised his impression after the game had been released and noted that it primarily failed where it diverged from Cuphead.[14] On OpenCritic, the reception from top critics is "weak", with less than 10% of the general critics recommending it.[15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Doolan, Liam (June 23, 2023). "Cuphead-Like 2D Platformer Enchanted Portals Coming To Switch This Summer". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  2. ^ Renadette, Brian (October 10, 2019). "Enchanted Portals Draws Ire Over Cuphead Comparisons". TechRaptor. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  3. ^ Loveridge, Sam (June 10, 2023). "Enchanted Portals is a magic-filled 2D platformer with Cuphead-style visuals". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  4. ^ Carvalho, Jared (October 28, 2019). "Enchanted Portals Kickstarter Canceled After Cuphead Anger". Game Rant. Archived from the original on December 8, 2019. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  5. ^ McFerran, Damien (April 16, 2020). "Cuphead Lookalike Enchanted Portals Is Heading Back To Kickstarter". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  6. ^ Quirk, Tom (September 5, 2023). "Enchanted Portals isn't exactly spellbinding". Checkpoint. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  7. ^ Roxburgh, Megan (September 1, 2023). "The Month in Games". The Indiependent. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Enchanted Portals for PlayStation 5 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 5, 2024. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  9. ^ "Enchanted Portals Reviews". OpenCritic. Archived from the original on September 18, 2023. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
  10. ^ Marshall, Cass (October 9, 2019). "Indie game Enchanted Portals draws backlash over Cuphead similarities". Polygon. Archived from the original on October 10, 2019. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  11. ^ Sagoo, Jaz (September 5, 2023). "A Leap Too Far". COGconnected. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  12. ^ Stockton, Kieran (September 5, 2023). "Enchanted Portals Review". WellPlayed. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  13. ^ Rambles, Joey (August 23, 2023). "Enchanted Portals Sets Itself Up for Fast, Frenetic Fun". Cultured Vultures. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  14. ^ Rambles, Joey (September 6, 2023). "Enchanted Portals (PC) REVIEW — Visuals Over Gameplay". Cultured Vultures. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  15. ^ "Enchanted Portals Reviews". OpenCritic. Archived from the original on September 18, 2023. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
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