Future Knight from Aeternum Game Studios and Studio Koba brings us a rather fetching retro-style 2D run and gun/shoot ’em up with LCD aesthetics. Check out our Future Knight review!

 

Future Knight from Aeternum Game Studios and Studio Koba brings us a rather fetching retro-style 2D run and gun/shoot ’em up with LCD aesthetics. The game takes place on March 23, 1993, when – and I quote because it’s a crazy setup that is worth reading in full – this happened:

The Lady of the Past, leader of the pyramid cult “Present”, has just washed her underwear and, in the process, erased the brains of all humanity. Only you, a robot built over 30 years from the remains of a 90s soap opera actor, can stop her. But you are not alone. You have Two More, a benign tumor, inexplicably powerful and with a life of its own that lives inside you.

Got all of that? Good. Your mission, should you accept it, is to embrace your role as the Future Knight and go back in time and travel 8 hours into the past, before the apocalypse. As you take on each level, you’ll be making your way through one hour in the aforementioned lady’s schedule before all of humanity’s memories are gone.

 

Future Knight takes us back to a time when we used to have small handheld consoles for which a single screen was brought to life with LCD technology that had some parts of the screen animate with characters, weapons, monsters/enemies, and attacks moving just enough to keep us engaged.

I’ve previously had a chance to work on reviews for games that the two aforementioned studios have worked on. There’s Aeterna Noctis from Aeternum Game Studios, a challenging 2D Metroidvania that I got to review on PlayStation 5 back in 2022. The other one is Narita Boy from Studio Koba’s technicolor retro-tastic 1980s-infused 2D action adventure, which I got to review on PlayStation 4 in 2021. I certainly enjoyed my time with both games, so I was up for checking out this new release.

After the intro cutscene ends, you’ll be taking control of Future Knight by using the left analog stick or the D-Pad, jumping by pressing the B button. The longer you press and hold down the button, the higher your jump will be. Shoot at enemies by pressing and holding down the Y button. If you press and hold down the L button, you’ll be able to remain in place as you aim and shoot around you. If you press and hold down the L button while falling, you can deploy a small parachute thing and slow your descent.

You also have a melee attack you can use by pressing the X button to get rid of enemies who are a bit too close for comfort. The melee attack can be used to defeat multiple enemies at once, which is why it will have a cooldown period. And yes, the melee attack can also be used when you’re up in the air! Pressing the ZR button will allow you to roll, which will make you invincible while also allowing you to get through tight spaces.

While at first it might seem like you could complete this mission on your own, it would be best if you make good use of your companion, Two More. Launch Two More by pressing the ZL button. Two More can climb walls thanks to his natural viscosity, has a more powerful close-range bullet attack, can go through tight spaces, and even has a super dash ability to help with both exploration and action. The super dash will use up one block of energy, and it can be activated to destroy triangular blocks while also dealing a lot of damage to enemies.

The two really, really need each other if they are to survive through this predicament. Why is that? Because Two More can help Future Knight heal some of its wounds and recover, and Future Knight can charge up Two More so that he recovers his lost energy. This is why you’ll need to find the right pace for using their respective abilities so that both are used to their full potential.

As you explore each level, you’ll get to collect some coins. You can also get coins by attacking enemies and defeating them as you make them go POP. Coins will act as the in-game currency, which you can use to purchase additional cases for the Little Nakamura portable console on which the game is played. Your options include yellow, red, green, blue, orange, and violet casings.

If you’re the type of gamer who likes to 100% games, then you should keep an eye out for the special triangles that you can find and collect along the way. There are three of these in each level. What will happen if you find all of the triangles? You’ll need to play the game to find out! Oh, and if you really want to 100% the game, you’ll also have to speedrun each level to complete it as quickly as possible so that you can get to the end by each stage’s specific time limit.

Future Knight from Aeternum Game Studios and Studio Koba brings us a rather fetching retro-style 2D run and gun/shoot ’em up with LCD aesthetics. Your mission, should you accept it, is to embrace your role as the Future Knight and go back in time and travel 8 hours into the past, before the apocalypse. As you take on each level, you’ll be making your way through one hour in the life of The Lady of the Past, leader of the pyramid cult “Present,” who, after washing her underwear, has erased all humanity’s memories.

You’re the titular Future Knight, and have been built by prestigious engineer LP Nakamura as a combat bioandroid. Little did you know that you’d be able to use a handheld console to go way back to Tokyo 30 years ago to try and save everyone from losing their essence. Will you be able to prevent the apocalypse? Future Knight is out on Nintendo Switch with a $14.99 price tag.

Disclaimer
This Future Knight review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by Aeternum Game Studios.