If you’re a fan of old school anime you may have heard of Space Cobra, a 1980s anime that started as a manga in the 1970s. Most people today probably aren’t familiar with it but the good news is you can get familiar with the new game Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening from publisher Microids and developer Magic Pockets. Available on most modern platforms now, let’s talk about how this adaptation turned out.
Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening is based on the first 12 episodes of the anime so no prior knowledge is really required to jump into this one. I dove in on PlayStation 5 to review it and played solo although there are some levels you can play with a friend locally that I didn’t get to try out. There are three different difficulties to choose from with one being good if you just want a laid back experience and the hardest one if you want a challenge. I went with the middle option for my playthrough and found it to be just right for me. The story of the game has you playing as Cobra who has had a face change and memory wipe to escape the eyes of the enemy faction in the game called the Pirate Guild. However, they find he is still very much alive and Cobra has to jump back into the fold to stop them.
The gameplay is very easy to grasp as it’s a run and gun with platforming elements mixed in. You have the ability to run and jump as well as slide. Your right arm has a weapon called the psychogun attached to it which allows you to shoot and even perform controlled shots. These are useful not only for shooting enemies but also in puzzle solving where you may have to shoot and then curve the shot to hit something. Additional tools at your disposal include a exploding cigar and a pistol that is needed to break through certain enemy shields. Finally, you have an ultimate attack that you have to fill up a meter to use by defeating enemies. Once full, you can use it with the L2 and R1 button and basically clear the screen of enemies.
The game plays well for the most part but there are some parts that feel like the platforming is a little off as well as parts where enemies or objectives are off screen a bit making it hard to see them and leading to some cheap moments. Luckily if you do die checkpoints are kind and load times are pretty fast. Beyond killing enemies and doing your objectives levels also have collectibles to find and power-ups to earn. You are also given reasons to replay to get a better scoring grade at the end of a level or to come back to previous areas with new abilities so that you can earn collectibles that you previously couldn’t get.
The presentation is another high point of the game for me as the cartoon art style looks great as you’re playing and the backgrounds are quite detailed. The animated cut-scenes are also very nice and I was happy that it had full voice-acting as well. Sure, some of the lines are a little cheesy but that’s to be expected part of the charm.
Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening is a fun romp that should please fans of the classic anime or movie but newcomers should find it enjoyable too. It has some annoyances in the level design at times and the controls can be a bit cumbersome at times but none of it hurts the experience much and the presentation really helps carry the whole package. Bottom line, fans of the IP should play it and anyone else interested in platformers or run ‘n’ guns should give it a shot even if you wait for a sale to do so.
*Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening is available now on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, and PC. PlayStation 5 version reviewed. Review copy provided by the publisher for this review.
Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening
$39.99
Pros
- Great presentation and voice acting
- Includes actual anime cutscenes
- Fun run 'n' gun platforming gameplay
Cons
- Level design has some annoyances
- Controls are a bit stiff at times
