It’s fair to say that Gimmick! 2 was a sequel that wasn’t on many people’s bingo cards before the surprise announcement in June 2024. Its 1992 predecessor, a retro gem and Sunsoft’s take on the platformer mascot, enjoys a cult reputation as one of the rarest Famicom/NES games thanks to its limited edition in Japan and, strangely, in Sweden.
It certainly made an impression on Gothenburg-based Bitwave Games, the studio behind Gimmick 2022! A special edition — a re-release of the notoriously difficult original for modern consoles — and its unlikely sequel. Not only is it the story of the revival of IP interesting, but we are happy to report that Gimmick 2 lives up to and undoubtedly surpasses its 8-bit predecessor.
Bitwave’s sequel manages to stay true to the original while also carving out its own identity with a modern hand-drawn visual style, refined control scheme, and improved level design. It also makes generous use of checkpoints, and infinite continues to encourage players to “go one step further” to complete numerous high-difficulty challenges.
Gimmick 2 may look like a breezy kid-friendly outing thanks to its brightly colored world and adorable green mascot, Yumetaru, but make no mistake, this game is heavy, and reaching its “true end” requires mastering its primary physics-based, star-throwing mechanics. At the same time, it’s also accessible enough to test your mettle without too much frustration.
The story is set without a single line of dialogue, with players quickly being thrown into a magical world to rescue a young girl kidnapped by an evil wizard. Yumeta’s moveset remains incredibly simple, consisting of moving, jumping, and conjuring a star missile, which serves as a versatile tool for solving puzzles, defeating enemies, and traversing in time. Learning how to use the star properly is key to progression, and trial and error is key. When thrown, the star bounces around with realistic physics, meaning players will have to deftly hit it on surfaces to activate otherwise inaccessible switches and figure out how to use it as a platform to reach well-hidden collectibles, cosmetic items, and secrets.
Once you get the hang of the controls and approach to the game, Gimmick 2 feels brilliantly fluid. The game is often fast-paced despite Yumetaro not having the ability to sprint. You gain speed by taking advantage of sloping terrain to clear gaps, allowing you to easily wipe out groups of enemies by gliding, rather than deflecting, a star missile.
Gimmick 2 excels at presenting complex problems with simple – though not easy – solutions. Its six worlds are meticulously designed with spikes to avoid, pipes to enter, platforms to activate and bosses to kill. While it doesn’t reinvent the wheel, sequences involving running from a giant snowball and hitchhiking on a whale add new unpredictability to the outing.
Players can change difficulty settings on the fly with the friendlier “Assisted” mode or the true-to-original “Gimmick!” mode with fewer hit points, narrower platforms and more frequent enemy encounters. With skill and practice, the game can be beaten in about 90 minutes, but the first clear can easily take 3 to 4 hours or more if you include exploration and trial and error.
To be clear, “Help” mode is not “Simple” mode. While it doesn’t detract from the game’s difficulty, it’s a better way to understand the dexterity required to overcome the game’s many challenges, while also offering a buffer for the frustration of perceived “cheap deaths”, preparing the player for future playthroughs, the fast running and mastery that Gimmick 2 is clearly made for for.
The game boasts a highly polished presentation with a clean, hand-drawn art style reminiscent of Cut The Rope and a mellow soundtrack by ex-Rare composer David Wise, which adds ambience and immersion without being intrusive, an important design factor as looping music can potentially be annoying when you try a sequence over and over again.
While early Steam reviews flagged some lag issues, Gimmick 2 handles the Switch flawlessly and we only experienced minor framerate drops here and there, nothing that negatively impacted our gameplay. Overall, it’s a title that stands out for its smoothness and fluidity with no load times or death penalties, sending players back to the last checkpoint to try again.
Although we left without facing any glaring issues or major complaints, although more enemy variety would have been nice. Some are divided on the game’s art style; we think it’s well executed, although it’s understandable that it’s not to everyone’s taste. The only impediment to a broad recommendation is that a “higher than casual” skill cap is required to complete the game.
Conclusion
Trick! 2 is an easy recommendation for fans of retro platformers and a no-brainer for fans of the original. Its lovely pleasant vibes belie a host of super-difficult but cleverly designed challenges that can be mastered with practice, precision and patience. What is clear is the absolute respect developer Bitwave Games has for the source material. Dispel any notion that this is a retro money grab; this is the sequel that the underappreciated and ahead of its time NES classic always deserved.
