The meme of a generation

When the Playstation 4 was first announced I don’t think this was the launch title anyone was really expecting. Knack in a lot of ways is likely a tech demo that ballooned into a full game. Knack comes from the Playstation 4’s lead designer, Mark Cerny. Sony at the time of this games release talked about this being the start of a new Crash Bandicoot franchise for them. I’m pretty sure that did not work out.

What you instantly take notice in this game is how gorgeous it is. Seriously I played this in 2015 but recently went back for footage. While the entire game isn’t eye popping, the particle effects might seriously still be unmatched 7 years later. Instead of taking the approach Killzone Shadowfall did with its marketing of how many enemies and AI the system could handle on screen, Knack takes the approach of marveling at how many moving parts they can put on the titular character.

Knack is a golem who starts off most levels as this tiny little creature, but as he breaks relic containers he can get bigger. While the sizes vary for Knack he essentially has his three forms

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There also is an endgame colossal version that is purely to show off how crazy the Playstation 4 can render that many objects on screen, and it really works. For all the issues this game has I’ll always stand by how impressive the effects are in this game even if Knack himself is ugly as hell.

The issue of Knack becomes clear real fast, he has no default projectile option. Due to the fact they wanted to make the next ‘Crash Bandicoot’, Knack is limited to punches and a dash punch. You CAN get yellow sun crystals to fire off a burst of energy at distanced enemies. There is a certain yearning this attack leaves that really makes you feel incomplete. Knack might be one of the most limited characters of all time because of his pure lack of moves.

Why did Crash Bandicoot feel great all those years ago? Because he would hit an enemy a single time and they would be defeated. Even when Crash fell to different developers the quality never really dropped too far off until it became this strange beat em up. That is what they accidentally did with Knack they copied the wrong games combat system!

Combat isn’t the only misfire here the platforming is a mess. This is something gaming figured out in the late 1990s in a 3D space but there are still games today that can’t figure it out. Because Knack is designed to feel like a heavier character his jumps really get little air and with that little movement in said air. The only good thing is they realized this wasn’t too great and don’t throw much at you.

The truly maddening thing is this games treasure system. The actual treasure chests aren’t bad, mostly hidden in breakable walls and vents. This is fine design, where it goes off the rails is what you get in the chest is usually garbage but if people on your friends list played the game and got something better you can take what they got instead.

The problem is the game has 68 chests in a single playthrough. The game has 8 gadgets and 6 unlockable Knack forms. The issue is the chests don’t just give you the parts you need, it’s random! On a basic playthrough you might complete a single gadget right near the end of a game but those knack forms require a ton of crystals just for a single form, and they are rare. While none of this is required, the entire upgrade system is thrown behind this insanity. If you want to grind for all the abilities well you’ll be playing this game again…several more times. By that point the equipment and forms you get are so unwarranted the entire system seems pointless.

Knack’s story is what I’d like to call Saturday Morning Cartoon filler. The world of Knack is a constant battle between humans and goblins. A doctor whose name is barely important forms some ancient relics together and somehow gives the being life, this is Knack. He is introduced as a next generation weapon in a tutorial level that feels ripped off of any comic book that does a weapons test against the superhero of that particular book (see Iron Man, or Superman, or Supergirl, etc).

An evil businessman is upset by the appearance of Knack and he’s basically the G rated Lex Luthor of this game with a sexy hitwoman who uses a mech later for some reason. Almost the entire game is Knack, the doctor and the doctor’s younger assistant traversing caves, goblin military compounds, and eventually Lex Luthor Jrs not so secret headquarters. As long as you remember that goblins are bad the story really doesn’t take many twists and turns at you.

Starting my PS4 journey with Knack seemed appropriate because even if it was two years later it still was the first on the system, the introduction to a generation. Knack is still a really average game that in any other context would just be forgotten. But because it had so many eyes on it, the memes dominated the word and collective conscience of the gamer populace.

Time: 13:15:00

Score 3/5

Date Beaten: 10/18/2015

Playthrough Facts
-Was the only game streamed from the PS4 internal streaming software itself during the challenge

Other Stuff
-Really dug the sun shots whenever I got to use them
-There is a part late mid game where Knack uses ice to bulk up since no relics are around. This doesn’t add much game play variety but it does look really cool
-The game has this bizarre Johnny Quest vibe to it.