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A Hat in Time
PC (Steam)
Tip My Hat to a Modern Twist on a Classic Genre
3.5/5 stars
Although Kickstarter has been all over the place when it comes to success or utter failure (or, worse, just outright grift), A Hat in Time is one of the good ones. Danish studio Gears for Breakfast put it up - managed to double its fundraising goal in just two days - and deliver across (currently) all platforms. A 3D platformer in the vein of classics like Spyro, Psychonauts and other earlier titles, A Hat in Time is certainly an indie success story and continues to enjoy widespread support as well as an active community of modders/workshop users.
Looks and Stuff: With an eye towards those early 3D platforming titles, A Hat in Time is a more polished version of those games - vibrant, colorful and voiced and with a catchy soundtrack to boot. The game also does a great job of shaking things up - from a murder mystery on a train to a sneaking around a haunted house and avoiding a ghost - it manages to give you more than just good platforming. The levels and enemies are varied and also a lot of fun - from mafioso cooks to dueling bird directors to your average soul-stealing, contract-wielding monster - it's a truly unique cast of characters you come across - with a mustachioed red-cloaked girl being your greatest friend/foe. Hat Kid doesn't talk much herself, but isn't quite the silent protagonist. Though the game stands out in the looks, it isn't without its flaws, the most annoying being the camera which, especially split-screen co-op, can be unwieldy and make judging your jumps quite annoying at times. This is especially true in certain bonus levels as well as the final pre-final boss area. It's not a deal-breaking but it is enough to make one growl.
Story: Our Hat Kid is out flying in space, looking to get home, when she flies over a planet that is home to a wide variety of characters. One such group is the cooking Mafia and seeing Hat Kid's ship, figures she is good for a toll - but when she refuses, the Mafia break into the ship and manages to scatter all her Time Pieces - hourglass-shaped ship fuel - and realizes that in order to get home, she will have to seek them out. On the Mafia-controlled first area, she comes across Mustache Girl - who initially teams up with Hat Girl to help track down the pieces. But Mustache Girl realizes the Time Pieces can be used to travel back in time - and she wants to do so in order to stop the Mafia. When Hat Girl refuses to go along with this plan, Mustache Girl turns on her, vowing to gather the pieces for herself. Across a variety of worlds, Hat Girl meets many strange and wonderful characters, from penguin and owl dueling directors to a ghostly contract-loving soul stealer - and despite many differences and difficulties - makes many friends along the way. However, Mustache Girl has her own plan and you know that saying about heroes and villains (or should if you watched The Dark Knight). Let's just say, a showdown is coming and it will be epic.
Gameplay: As an ode to 3D platformers of old, A Hat in Time certainly follows that playbook. The level design of mostly open-worlds is very accommodating for exploration and you will pick up a lot of items - from yarn balls that give you new hats (and hat powers) to the standard currency that lets you buy badges that give you additional benefits (although some are entirely useless as well - so read before you buy!). Of course, Time Pieces are what you are after and these usually appear following boss (or miniboss) battles or completing the level's objective. There are five massive worlds and each world is divided into five or so missions and, as I said above, the developers know how to shake things up. Apart from the main levels, you can also find Time Rifts and these lead to mini areas where your platforming skills are put to the test - leading to additional time pieces. Your own ship has Time Rifts as well - as well as some fun Easter Eggs and its own secrets. The game seems pretty simple but actually has a fair bit of depth and those looking for completion will certainly face some challenges.
Replay value: There is plenty of DLC available (though we didn't play any) so you can add a lot post-game should you be so inclined and also has a robust community of modders so if you like this game, you won't run out of stuff to do.
Final Verdict: Despite some issues, A Hat in Time is solid platformer with a fun aesthetic and memorable characters.
Presentation: 4/5
Story: 3/5
Gameplay: 3/5
Replay: 3/5
Overall (not an average): 3.5/5
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