As far as wholesome games go, KarmaZoo takes the cake.
It’s a brilliant multiplayer platformer that fills your heart, and floods your head with copious amounts of dopamine.
While this 2D puzzle platformer doesn’t always put forward the most challenging tasks, it does test your patience and teamwork skills.
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KarmaZoo has been created with love by Pastagames, a small but passionate gaming studio in France.
I met one of the game’s creators, game designer Nadim Haddad, at PAX Aus in October and the enthusiasm and drive of this studio was evident.
Enter the Loop
Stepping into the KarmaZoo portal activates a new game, or what’s known as a Loop. Joining hands with 9 others, players must navigate through four randomly chosen stages filled with intriguing puzzles.
Taking the forms of various animals, foods and objects, players must work together to make it to the end of each level before time runs out. Often the only way forward is by a player taking advantage of an ability to clear a path.
The idea is to stick together as a team, with every player required to stay close to another or perish. It’s an ingenious way to make sure most players stay close.
On one particular Loop, a couple of us got separated… Out of good will, I was forced to stay close to a lone player to keep them alive. Another player also followed and we were led through an invisible wall and through a maze of secret areas. I was surprised to see how far this secret pathway went, taking us all the way to the end of the level ahead of all the others.
While this wasn’t exactly the most cooperative way to finish a level, it was certainly exciting.
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With the race for kindness the key to success, often the competition can get fierce. Droves of KarmaZoo avatars, in the form of up to 9 other players around the world, race to open doors and activate puzzles. It’s not all out of the goodness of our hearts, players are rewarded for good deeds.
Collecting Karma
Every time you help another player, the game recognises this and distributes a Karma heart.
Karma hearts are sculpted by all players throughout a loop, with the total combined at the end and shared among the group.
These hearts are essentially currency for acting out good deeds — and there’s so much to spend them on.
If you’re into collecting, KarmaZoo has an overwhelming amount of unlockable characters and abilities.
Back at the Sanctuary, which acts as your home base, you can ride the elevator to view an abundance of unlockable avatars.
There’s over 50 unlockable and playable forms, each with their own special abilities. I’d be lying if I said I’d tried them all. I’ve unlocked half a dozen, and there’s an overwhelming amount more to see.
The developers have also implemented a collective Karma pool they’ve named KarmaPass. Every single heart collected from Loops is added to the pool, and when the target is reached a bonus is unlocked. It’s a nice touch and adds to the togetherness.
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Online Play
Given the game’s strict multiplayer nature and reliance on real players during the review period, I’m still yet to complete a number of features. Progression is determined by Karma Hearts collected; the more you collect the more you can unlock.
The game offers cross-platform online play; a few of us on the Quest Daily team attempted to party up but our PC player couldn’t connect to the group on PlayStation 5. We tried troubleshooting but eventually gave up. It’s either a one-off glitch, or we can put this down to a pre-launch bug.
Slight connectivity bugs and online restrictions aside, KarmaZoo is a wonderful, feel-good experience. Its simple puzzle platforming makes it accessible to a wider range of gamers, and its narrative, or lack of, easily translates and opens the door to thousands around the world.
Quest Daily scores KarmaZoo:
8.5/10
Quest Daily was granted early access to KarmaZoo by the publisher.
