Every so often, a game comes along that grabs my attention to where I can’t stop thinking about it. It’s not often but it does happen and today’s game is one such game. Not just for how many times I called it BAD Bunny Nemesis (don’t ask me why I did) and not Bunny Battle Nemesis, but for some fun, if basic, gameplay and a neat artstyle that I instantly fell in love with.
The game is a basic side-scrolling beat ‘em up and this does bring me to my first real issue with the game and that is the odd perspective. Normally, in these types of games, you have one of two perspectives: A view of the whole field where you can move anywhere on the screen or one where you can only go left or right. Here, the perspective is a combination of the two and this really tripped me up a few times as it was hard to tell if I was actually hitting someone. Now, yes, you can tell if you’re hitting someone via the sound effects, their reactions to being hit and there is a bit of a shadow or ring beneath the enemies to help, but I still find this choice a bit odd and I’m curious as to why they just didn’t go with a basic 2D side scroller style and not this union of two. I’m also not a fan of some of the in-game events that can occur, like pinball bumpers appearing that makes getting juggled by enemies even more annoying. I get what they were going for and it is a cool idea on paper, just not in execution. Still, it’s not enough to hurt the overall gameplay which I would describe as fun but slightly repetitive.
To begin with, you have a choice of four characters from the outset, with a fifth available to purchase with in-game currency, and each one offers a different playstyle. For my playthrough, I went with the brawler Gladius, though I did experiment with the other characters and found each one suited for different playstyles. General Bjorka, for example, I found is good for those who want to hit hard and be able to survive everything while Berserker, who’s a bunny with a twisted dark side, I actually found to not be suited for me as I just couldn’t get a proper handle on him no matter how hard I tried. His grotesque form, on the other hand, I dug immensely and did enjoy seeing it unleashed in battles. Speaking of which, I do like how each one has unique attacks to them and the Rage Attack you can do, once you’re meter is filled, is satisfying to pull off, alongside the various Dolomite Stones you can find, allowing you to either unleash a super attack that can take out most enemies quickly or as an extra life if you happen to die. I also like how you can level each character up with the in-game currency, called Blood Coins, in-between levels or in the separate Arena mode, which the later is basically a horde style mode. Though, expect a lot of grinding of coins to level up just one move as they do get expensive, but worth it as there is a noticeable improvement to your damage output when you level these moves up. But, remember when I said it’s easy to be juggled? Yeah, that can happen alot in the game and I found myself on the receiving end of many jugglers instead of the opposite, which is fun when you're juggling the enemies. In fact, it’s very easy to get locked in inescapable attacks from enemies to where you can’t do jack and you end up losing most of your health in the process, leading to many frustrating sections, especially when fighting the tougher enemies and bosses. I will give the game credit that you can regain health from health power ups you can find in these various bunny stations that pop up in every level, alongside Dolomite Stones and Blood Coins. If I were to use a food item to describe the combat, it’d be leftover pizza (with pineapple) from the previous night: Sure, it’s cold and probably not the best thing to eat, but it’s still enjoyable and tasty and you don’t let the cold bother you.
Frustrating combat aside, I have to say, I love this game’s artstyle. It reminds me of a lot of Adult Swim shows, especially Metalocalypse which I feel this game really takes heavy inspiration from in both its concept and animation style. Mind you, it’s not as graphic as that show, even though there is a good bit of blood, but the inspirations are still there. Now, while a lot of the enemy characters do tend to blend in with the background at times, their color coding does make it slightly easy to spot them and, thus, avoiding turning the game into an impromptu version of Where’s Waldo. Speaking of the backgrounds, there are some nicely designed areas, with many feeling like it came off of a fantasy novel or a folk metal album. While some are a bit on the mediocre side, I still enjoyed looking at them and I do feel this is one area where the odd perspective does help, being able to show a bit more depth to the backgrounds in a way. What I will say is a negative is how repetitive the enemy designs are. Now, I do like how you can tell each one apart and which one needs more attention to thanks to the color schemes (like Red’s are the elite ones and Gold ones are the hardest to fight and take precedence over everything), but the fact you’re fighting mostly the same style of enemy throughout the game does lead to some feelings of boredom. It’s not enough to hurt the game, just enough to make you go “ugh, these guys again?”. Same goes with the machinery you fight; they’re just not creative. In fact, I’d say the machine enemies are actually the worst ones to fight thanks, once again, to the camera perspective. Because of where the camera is placed, it is sometimes hard to even land a hit on the flying drones and turrets and I ended up getting the most damage from them and not the ground based enemies. This isn’t to say all the characters are generic as some do have a cool look to them. The main bunnies you control, for instance, each have a unique design to them, like Gladius look like a samurai Predator and Berserker’s monster form being this ungodly monster from the very depths of Tartarus that wouldn’t look out of place in a Happy Tree Friends short. Even the grunts you fight, despite me saying they’re generic looking, do have some cool armor designs, with one reminding me a lot of Super Shredder from TMNT 2: Secrets Of The Ooze.
Still, the graphics, like I said, are great to look at and my issues with them are more or less just small nitpicks. Same goes with the overall sound as, again, it’s good. The soundtrack is pretty amazing, with that title theme being one of the coolest themes I’ve heard in a while. The actual in-game music isn’t half bad too, with many having this cool 80’s synth sound going for it. Though, on the other hand, the voice acting is somewhere in the middle. Some characters are voiced decently, like the grunts you fight, but others, like the end-stage boss, not so much. Yet, somehow, the rather cheesy voice acting does add to this game’s charm and does make it feel like, again, an Adult Swim show in game form. I feel like ‘Adult Swim’ is what the game was going for and, you know, I like that! Not every game has to be inspired by Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network shows. Sometimes you just want a game to have cute critters killing and slaughtering their foes in brutal ways.
If I were to describe Bunny Battle Nemesis in one sentence, I’d choose ‘Fun But Flawed’. There are many good ideas here and the gameplay is fun and engaging. I even found myself smiling throughout which, to me, means I’m really enjoying it. However, the monotony of the gameplay and some questionable choices do affect the game on a whole, though not enough to make me not want to recommend it. There were times where the combat did get me slightly bored, but it was never enough to make me fall asleep or just turn the game off. I’d say the flaws actually make me want to recommend it more, which I know sounds weird but hear me out. To me, it’s like when I watched the 1987 film ‘The Barbarians’. Sure, it’s not the best movie, it has its on series of flaws, and there are better films I could be watching, but you can see the passion and love put into it and I just can’t help but smile throughout and enjoy what’s on offer (That and the film has the most insane way of escaping an hanging sequence, but that’s neither here nor there). That’s how I feel about Bad Bunny…I mean, Bunny Battle Nemesis (second time I called it Bad Bunny): It may not be a perfect game but I can’t help but smile and love it.
