Cosmos Bit (Xbox One) Review with stream

Cosmos Bit is a simple, cute Metroid-like that can be completed under two hours. This charming little adventure proves that big things can come in small packages.

If it wasn’t for the hand drawn banner marketing art, you wouldn’t be able to tell the tiny pixel sprite of a main character is female as there are obvious nods to Nintendo’s famous bounty hunter right down to the orange suit and gunship. You only gain a few new abilities throughout the quest but the brief narrative is still well paced and oh so charming from beginning to end.

When playing on Xbox, the “A” button jumps and the “X” button shoots. This uncomplicated approached and lower difficulty makes this the perfect Metroid-style game for beginners or fans that just want a pleasurable experience. There are a few moments of difficulty, like trying to make it to that next health restoring checkpoint earlier in the quest, but the experience is mostly a casual breeze from beginning to end. In fact, the boss battles are too easy. Like most common enemies, they just move back and forth in an easy to read pattern, just asking to be blown away. Also, bombs, one of the few unlockable abilities, are also not utilized as much as they could have been.

Like many other Ratalaika Games titles, it is easy to unlock all the Achievements and you don’t even need to finish the game to unlock them all. But since the quest is compact and well done, you’ll want to see it to the end. The soundtrack is also isolating and coincides with the tone of the game.

There is one gameplay element that makes this quest just a little different than a straight Metroid-clone. When certain boulders are destroyed, they might drop a different colored orb. These random orbs are used to enhance health and add more bombs to your inventory, but they are also used as currency to save your game. Sure, reaching that checkpoint will restore your health but actually saving the game will cost a couple orbs. This sort of reminded me of the ink ribbon mechanic in early Resident Evil titles but taken to another level. Do you spend these precious orbs to save your game, or do you stockpile these colors to unlock that next enhancement? Towards the second half of the game, you’ll have plenty so this won’t be much of a decision but it is an interesting risk-reward twist.   

Cosmos Bit is awesome. It is really fun. It is approachable and much appreciated. This is a wonderful example that you don’t need high def visuals, a campaign that takes hundreds of hours, or an online component that hosts dozens of players at a time. Nope. This is quality experience you can knock out in an afternoon and have a smile on your big, dumb face the entire time.

Also Play: Trash Quest

Don’t Forget About: Gato Roboto

Makes Me Want To Replay: Escape from Tethys  

By: Zachary Gasiorowski, Editor in Chief myGamer.com

Twitter: @ZackGaz

Please consider supporting me on Patreon.