Polyroll is a colorful trip that owes as much to fan games as it does to Sonic
by Amr (@siegerettes)
- Polyroll
- Developer: Spicy Gyro Games, Shiny Dolphin Games LLC
- Publisher: HOF Studios
- Switch, PC
Debuting at the Sonic Amateur Games Expo, Polyroll isn’t shy about its inspirations. Its mix of blue skies, urban vibes and geometric landscapes pay homage to SEGA aesthetics, and the spin dash takes a prominent role. Unlike other momentum platformers, however, Polyroll focuses on exploring the ball mechanics rather than pure speed. It gives the game a more exploratory feeling, one that recalls DOS PC platformers like Jazz Jackrabbit or Charlie the Duck, and bring back memories of early Sonic fangames built through Klik n Play and The Games Factory.
Removed from the constant push for forward momentum, Polyroll is free to move at a more relaxed pace. Getting through stages is still relatively quick, but getting each of the stages’ three hidden gems requires thoughtful exploration. Each stage has a good amount of verticality, keeping it dense while allowing you to dash through most of them if you choose to. Gems unlock alternative paths on the world map, and challenge you to engage with stage specific mechanics and Polyroll’s ricochet mechanics.
By rolling into a spin dash then launching yourself into a wall you can ricochet between pillars and gain height. Initially I found it difficult to use, since I kept pressing directions while bouncing, which ended up slowing me down. Instead you need to let go and let momentum carry you, and once I figured that out it allowed me to access a lot more of the vertical spaces Polyroll provides.
Scanning a space and finding angles to ricochet off is the highlight of the game. It makes navigation fun and gives a similar joy to hitting a pinball at just the right angle to bounce off a specific bumper or roll up a ramp. Heart Palaces and boss fights lean into the pinball aesthetics, and require precise use of the mechanic. Heart Palaces in particular ramp up the challenge, putting you into time trials that leave little room for error. Sadly, outside of optional Heart Palaces and boss fights, the ricochet is underutilized. The ricochet stays fun throughout, but it leaves plenty of territory unexplored.
Stage specific mechanics carry that weight instead. Ramps, springs, speed tubes, switch activated platforms and areas that require powers provided by shields–there’s a great variety of unique and returning mechanics, each giving a twist on the core traversal. Plenty of gems are also hidden in corners that require bouncing off a series of enemies. Puzzling out each stages formation of mechanics keeps it fresh, and makes it enjoyable to return to each stage.
And you’ll return to each stage a lot. If there’s one recurring flaw to Polyroll, it’s that it requires multiple attempts to understand stages. Some gems become inaccessible if you miss a detail or move too fast, and the camera doesn’t always keep up with the stages’ verticality, leading to a few blind jumps. One notable stage started me immediately on a downward ramp, requiring me to make a jump off of it almost immediately at the perfect angle to collect its first gem. It’s impossible to get without a lot of trial and error, and you’ll definitely not get it on the first try.
Stages are built around retrying stages, so it’s generally not a serious problem. Gems stay collected even if you die and stages are short enough that they don’t even need checkpoints. For most stages, it’s more an offbeat design decision rather than a problem, but on the stages that do run long it can be frustrating and wear away your interest.
Outside those sparse moments of frustration, Polyroll manages to keep things breezy enough that its small flaws are quickly forgotten. Stages are so fast and digestible it’s easy to keep bounding through them, and when I didn’t like one idea it was soon replaced with another. It’s not quite flawless, but it brings so many ideas and exciting aesthetics that it continued to be enjoyable throughout.
Bursting with charm and color, Polyroll is a breezy adventure that demands repeat trips. An easy recommendation for anyone seeking good vibes.