Kao the Kangaroo Review: A Reboot That Lacks a Bit of Punch

Released on May 27th, the Tate Multimedia game Kao the Kangaroo is available on all devices. The third-person 3D action platformer will have players once again jump into the shoes of Kao. The current game with the fourth entry in the Kao the Kangaroo franchise. We got our hands on the newest Tate Multimedia entry. Find out how it is in our review of Kao the Kangaroo.

Story: A heroic tale that misses the mark

Our story follows the young Kao, a kangaroo from the island of Hopalloo. When his father Koby goes missing, his sister Kaia sets out to search for him. With both of them missing, Kao sets out with his father’s magical gloves to find both of them. Kao must cross the land, face the fighting masters now influenced by a dark power, and defeat the Eternal Warrior who threatens the world.

The story of heroes setting out on an adventure to rescue their loved ones is as old as time and, in particular, is not new in this genre of games. Unfortunately, the dialogue is also pretty outdated, with Kao’s mother referencing “taking an arrow to the knee,” which the younger generation won’t probably recognize for a game that seems to be aiming at. The somewhat stale delivery doesn’t help the dialogue any, unfortunately. So if you’re looking for a substantial story, you’ll probably want to look elsewhere.

Gameplay: Easy platforming with some light exploration

Calling back to the early days of the simple platformers, the reboot of the twenty-two-year-old series felt old while also doing its best to give off the feeling of new. The player will have up to eight moves to use as Kao explores the different zones. Each of these zones will throw several types of grunts at you, with some that will shoot sheep at you or drop piranhas. Every zone ends with a boss fight that also has their unique patterns and attacks.

There are also three types of powers to wield with fire, ice, and wind element, players will use these in combat to augment their attacks, but these powers will primarily be used in your traversal of each zone. Between climbing across vines using your ears, swinging across floating hooks with the powers of your gloves, and solving the puzzles that will block your way. Some challenges will remind you of playing earlier games like Crash Bandicoot as the game will run away from a giant log or slide down a hill while avoiding falling icicles.

Outside the main story progression, there are lots of collectibles within each zone. Exploring the beaten path. Players will discover letters that spell Kao, crystals, and notes littered throughout. Collecting these will unlock purchasable outfits that Kao can show off as they explore. Notes will unlock lore about the world, the people surrounding Kao, and the crystals. Unfortunately, throughout our review of Kao the Kangaroo, we couldn’t find a purpose for the crystals outside of being something extra to collect. While nothing too original, Kao the Kangaroo still delivers a good few hours of gameplay without becoming too repetitive.

Graphics/Audio: A varied and visually beautiful world

Leveraging the Unreal Engine 4, the team at Tate Multimedia brings players a world with varied environments. From the island of Hopalloo to the dense tropic of the Hungry Jungle and through the Frozen Mountains to your final destination, the world of Kao, while simplistic and may fall into the usual tropes of the platformer, will nonetheless deliver a visually appealing place to visit for a bit.

Unfortunately, players are going to find that the voice acting in Kao is relatively poor. Between the dated character lines and the lack of emotion in some characters, like Kao’s father, Toby. These issues are felt through the game’s dialogue and spoil what the developers may have wanted from the ending of Kao the Kangaroo. Still, there were breakthrough characters like Walt, who is a decent counterbalance to Kao as the game progresses. Lastly, we only encountered one crash during our review of Kao the Kangaroo and no other bugs.

Conclusion: A decent introductory platforming game

Tate Multimedia brings back the nostalgic feeling of the old-school 3D platforming game with Kao the Kangaroo. It’s not trying to reinvent the wheel or be too gimmicky. Instead, you get a colorful world with light humor. It’s not too challenging and offers enough good gameplay to be a decent introductory title to the genre. And while the voice acting and dialogue can fall flat at times, Kao the Kangaroo is a relaxing platformer that’ll offer a few hours of straightforward enjoyment. You’ll find an excellent choice here if that’s what you’re looking for.

After reading our review of the Tate multimedia game Kao the Kangaroo, it’s currently available on PC vias Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 & 5, Xbox One & Series X|S for $29.99. You can also learn more about Kao the Kangaroo by heading to the game product page. Lastly, you follow the developers Tate Multimedia on their development page to follow updates or other projects.