I kid you not. This is the premise of the short XBLA game that Twisted Pixel just brought out. Sounds like it has potential but really how did it hold up?
Visually each "world" has a different style to it, but it is all done in very, nowadays, basic 3D models that are forced to look 2D-ish. All in the hopes to try and give a 2D based concept some kind of depth, but it is definitely nothing to write home about. But at least each "world" does have a different aesthetic to it which is something other games failed at. So at least that was nice.
I know a lot of people have hammered on the voice overs for Comic Jumper, but I actually found them to be a little entertaining. I will agree there were points where I wanted everyone just to shut up, but it all had a Haunted World Of El Superbeasto type of humor about it all. But I know that isn't for everyone. I am odd, I know. I even liked the "Boom Goes My Ringtone" ringtone. Sue me.
Now what I found extremely lacking was the actual game play. It is a side scroller that swaps to front scroller. Think Contra and you'll have the idea of things. That style works at least when the level designs are mixed up a bit. I actually felt like I was running through re-textured levels a few times. Something that felt like Twisted Pixel didn't have a good level designer so they tried to cover it up with more humor then needed.
I will also say that it was kind of odd to have to do almost everything with the trigger buttons. You do or can use the other buttons on the controller to do the same actions, but after being shown through the tutorials to use the triggers and bumpers it feels wrong. This could also be due to the fact that I am not a big fan of the XBox controller too but I think I'd have the same issue if it was with a PS3 controller too.
So we got humor, we got some fun visuals, but is it really worth the 1200 MS points? Honestly, if there was more to the actual game play I'd say yes. It does feel like Twisted Pixel focused more on trying to be funny with everything instead of giving us a well rounded game. I mean it is awesome to see the developers as one of the huge special moves, but those types of things just do not make a game. If it was added to a well rounded game I think they would have had more of a hit.
If you really are interested in Comic Jumper for yourself, I'd recommend waiting until it drops a bit in MS points. It is a good start to something that could have been amazing, but it really just fell a bit flat for a 1200 point buy.
Comic Jumper was developed and Published by Twisted Pixel on October 6th 2010 for the XBox 360. The game retails for 1200 MS. A code for the game was provided by the publisher for review purposes.
