Bionic Commando

Bionic Commando is a side-scrolling action game where the arm is the whole trick, and that single mechanic gives it a very different feel from ordinary run-and-jump platformers. By our assessment, the grappling arm is its best idea: swinging across gaps, pulling yourself into position, and using momentum makes movement the main puzzle. The downside is that this kind of control can be demanding, because if the timing is off, the whole rhythm breaks. In practice it is less about clean jumps than about learning how to hang, swing, and recover, which gives it a distinctive texture. It sits apart from more straightforward action games, and Bionic Commando rewards players who like movement systems with a bit of friction rather than easy precision.