It's been years since we heard of Jet Set Radio, a beloved game of which I myself am a huge fan. Over time, the gap left by the title has never been filled: nothing like it has kept me as long in front of a screen as Sega's title did.
It is with this premise that I want to tell you about the product of Midgar studio e Fusty Game: Hover: Revolt of Gamers, a futuristic 3D open-world title by Parkour.
Welcome to ECP17
In the futuristic metropolis of ECP17On an unknown planet in a distant galaxy, an unscrupulous Dictator called the Grand Administrator has enforced anti-fun laws. All communications with the Galactic Union have been blocked and all forms of entertainment have been banned. In Hover: Revolt of Gamers we will be placed in command of a group of rebels, called Gamers, at war against this oppressive dictatorship exercised by the Grand Administrator.
The Core Concept of the game can bring to mind the exploits of the Professor K and GG or, broadly speaking, the famous novel 1984 di Orwell: we are therefore faced with a plot already seen and revisited several times in various video games, books and films.
Neon lights and Futuristic design
The game's graphics take advantage of the style of the cel shading and a very cartoonish design. The settings, fresh, bright, colorful and pulsating with neon lights, are able to effectively transport us into the future.
The game makes full use of visual effects such as Motion Blur which, in combination with the excellent fluidity of the animations, creates a very pleasing graphic effect.
The sparkling neon lights are omnipresent in the title, starting with the accessories worn by the characters and ending with the signs present throughout the city.
These well-finished graphic details are able to give Hover a playful and fun atmosphere, making us almost totally forget the oppressive dictatorial regime that the rebels - and us in their shoes - try to overturn with all their might.
Take me up to Heaven above
The electronic sounds that are part of Hover's original soundtrack, composed for the most part by the talented Cedric Menendez, pulsate with a life of their own and manage to make every game a real "race" with a high rate of adrenaline.
He also took part in the composition of the music Hideki Naganuma, historical composer
for the tracks of Jet Set Radio and Jet Set Radio Future, which was able to give the title that nostalgic and soulful "vibe".
The only flaw is the lack of dubbing of the various game characters, both in game and during conversations: this takes depth from the characters, making them flat, replaceable, unimportant.
Parkour has never been easier
In Hover: Revolt of Gamers there are different game modes including the free roaming, races, gameball games, forwarding missions such as the delivery of objects and food, and many others, but the principle of the title does not change: run in a huge metropolis using all the elements of the area to reach your goal as soon as possible .
The structure of the title is simple: to access a mission, we will have to go and talk to the interested character and this will immediately begin. Depending on how long it takes to complete it, we will unlock certain rewards.
Each character has one skill grid which can be filled using the appropriate chips, each of which will give bonuses to one of the character's basic statistics: Strength, Speed, Grind, Jump, Energy and Hacking.
Hover's controls are very simple: WASD for the movements, Left uppercase for stunts and the mouse for steering. The classic keyboard + mouse setting is absolutely not annoying, but if for some reason it should not be to your liking, the title of Midgar studio e Fusty Game it also supports the use of joypads.
Despite the size of the city of ECP17, we often come across quite serious level design errors: grinding railings inserted only to perform tricks (and not to give more body and realism to the setting) and difficulties in vertical elevation are perhaps the two biggest flaws of Hover : Revolt of Gamers.
The title is also not free from minor bugs but, fortunately, these do not spoil the gaming experience in the least.
The fun never ends
The characters of the title, 10 in total, can be unlocked after passing a series of challenges. Each of these characters will launch a challenge and upon completion of the same will give you his "DNA Kit". This special kit will allow you to "Clone" the character who has entrusted you with the mission and thus create a new member to add to your team. Each Character has certain strengths and weaknesses that will be combined with the huge choice of chip to be included in the skill grid: For this reason it will be very difficult to find multiple players with the same build.
This title has a huge replayability factor also in consideration of the fact that missions can be completed in many different ways with as many different paths.
Should the main missions of the game prove boring to the most hardcore gamers, Hover: Revolt of Gamers offers a challenge editor simple and intuitive within the title itself. Each player will be able to create their own personal challenge and play it in both single player and multiplayer modes.
Another feature that makes Hover a title that can make you lose track of time is precisely the possibility of joining online with other players from all over the world.
There is no need to search for servers and access them, as Hover has a very simple option of multiplayer drop-in: you will only have to select the online game option, at any time of the game, to be catapulted into a 'server' inhabited by other Gamers like you.
In multiplayer mode, you can cooperate or challenge each other: this opportunity makes Hover a perfect title for some action and parkour together.
CONCLUSIONS
Hover: Revolt of Gamers is certainly a well-made title, able to make users lose track of time by catapulting them into a well-designed futuristic world and to make players remember, but not regret, the hours spent on Jet Set Radio.
