Yoku's Island Express

Yoku's Island Express gives platforming a pinball body, and that odd mix is exactly why it stands out. By our assessment, the game works best when you enjoy bouncing, nudging switches, and building momentum through a colorful island rather than making precise jumps in the usual way. Its charm is also its limit: pinball movement can feel delightful when the table-like routes line up, and awkward when you want the sort of direct control a normal platformer gives you. In practice it is brisk, cheerful, and built around chained motion instead of repeated failure. It sits somewhere between a Metroid-style adventure and a pinball machine, which is still a rare combination. Players who like inventive control schemes and light exploration will get the most from it, while anyone wanting strict platforming precision may bounce off the whole idea. Yoku's Island Express is not trying to be a hard retro platformer, and that is part of the point.