Review: Kukoos: Lost Pets is a Journey to Classic Platformers

From collecting stars, coins, puzzle piezes and magical notes to fighting dragons, witches and the devil himself, 3D platformers are perhaps my favorite genre of my childhood. And while some may consider this genre dead and keep it together with rhythm games a collect-a-thons, whenever a new platformer arrives on the scene, rest assured that I’m going to follow. Kukoos: Lost Pets is out now for its full release after finishing its Early Access stage, and I have played it. Today, I will present my review to you, ladies and gentlemen, with the upmost showcase of gallantry and consideration. Why you ask? Simple. It is because this game has won my utter respect. Here is Kukoos: Lost Pets, a review by yours truly.

Kukoos: Lost Pets Biggest Takeaways

• The feel and gameplay is reminiscent of classic 3d platformers.
• The variety in gameplay styles will keep you adapting to any new obstacle presented.
• Balance is correctly implemented throughout the game.
• The character, world and level design is top-notch.

Final Score: 8/10

A Platformer After All

I grew with games such as Mario 64, the Banjo-Kazooie franchise (not Nuts & Bolts, thankfully), Donkey Kong 64, and even I had a copy of Gex 3 for the Nintendo 64. Being a Nintendo kid, and specifically a Nintendo platformer kid, gives me certain credit when playing platformers in the sense of gameplay, feel and overall experience. I can say that Kukoos: Lost Pets really delivers on that matter. In fact, I believe it is a certified classic in the sense that it feels like the original games that defined the 3d platformer genre.

This could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the perspective of the player. For me, it’s mostly good because the skill based games are my cup of tea. Not because I’m particularly good at them, but because everything feels justified, whether you win or lose. But we will talk about difficulty later. On the other hand, one could say that the game does not bring much new to the table. Yeah, the abilities given by the pets may bring some variety to the gameplay and be the solution to the different obstacles presented, but other than that, it may seem just like a jump and run game. And I’m completely fine with it.

Overall, my experience gameplay-wise was flawless except for a couple of glitches now and then where the character will not be animated correctly and will appear to move without moving its legs (almost like a T-pose but without the arms up on the sides). Other than that, I found my play through pretty solid and entertaining.

Ok, That Was All Me

Now, I have talked about games artificially pumping difficulty into their games through cheap enemy mechanics or lack of balance in their games. I’m pleased to tell you that that’s not the case with Kukoos: Lost Pets. One could take the easy way out and blame the game for you failing to beat the world boss for a seventh time, but in retrospective, you very much know when, where and what you did wrong. Rage-quitting and platformers are a balanced marriage while the rage quitter is able to admit its mistakes, and I believe this will be a happy union with all of you platformer fans.

However, I do have to say that I have a couple of criticisms in regard to the game’s balance and difficulty, but it has nothing to do with the controls or the balance per se, it has everything to do with the platformer nemesis: the infamous camera. I think it is a classic issue with 3d platformers since the Mario 64 times. While Kukoo brings a great balance to the game, the camera is your worst enemy. You cannot change the angle even slightly, and sometimes that can be deadly when attempting to jump. I understand that due to game and level design, you cannot have a free camera, but at least give us an option to rotate it a couple of degrees! It could really make a difference and would have saved me a couple of deaths and headaches as well.

A Familiar Aesthetic, a Well Designed World

The art style of this game is very reminiscent to games like Fall Guys, with a very cartoony feel. It serves the game play well, as big jumps and maneuvers seem to suit the adorable and fluffy Kukoos. Not only that, but the overall world design is great. Each world having its own character and life. No world or even level feels the same as the other, and that is the testament to what the developers have done with this game overall. No need for Ray Tracing and DLSS 3.0, just give a couple of wholesome chubby characters, some levels that differentiate themselves apart, and you have yourself a great game in your hands.

And by the way, I love that the level design is not that in your face as other games. There is little room for exploration in the sense of several pathways or secret sections, but you feel like you are exploring the level while you are progressing through the game. No such things as left or right or up or down. The direction is constantly flipped, and the way the characters move and travel through the world is unique to the world in which they are currently located.

Story? Sure, Why Not

Note: story spoilers ahead. My biggest gripe with Kukoos: Lost Pets is the story. Now, I don’t think it is a complete failure or an unfixable mess, but I think the developers went a little bit overboard with the ridiculous and frivolity of the story. I get it, there is a contest in which each Kukoo and their pets must go through a series of obstacles. Then a king of sorts arrives in a mechanical pet that can compete somehow, then all pets go berserk due to some mind controlling accessories, and they begin the attack on all the Kukoos.

Somehow, in spite of you being the worst contender for the contest, your Grandma, which is everybody’s grandma, handles you a concoction of sorts that makes you hallucinate, and you go through a suggestive anthropomorphic door to another dimension in which you will somehow free the land of this evil.

Did someone hire Seth Rogen as a writer for this game? Don’t get me wrong, I love Seth as much as you can love a celebrity, but the script feels like it was made by someone, well, someone like Seth, if you know what I mean. Of course you know what I mean, you naughty boy or girl. And while I do like the constant “it’s like my grandma used to say, *proceeds to explain a certain game mechanic previously unknown” that suggests that your Grandma is a genius, I think the game will benefit from a much simpler story. And while you’re at it, at least introduce the game’s bosses a lit bit better than just “hey, a boss, let’s fight it”.

Related: How Long is Kukoos: Lost Pets? Explained

Conclusions of a Pet Adventure

No game is perfect, certainly Kukoos: Lost Pets isn’t. But what the game is, I liked. Maybe I’m a sucker for 3d platformers, but when I dropped the rage caused by the constant deaths, I remember that was exactly how I felt back in the day. This is a well-designed game, with memorable worlds and levels, with mechanics that bring uniqueness to the table and enough variety to keep you playing for the duration of the game. And while the story surely is a little too much out there for me and the camera could definitely be improved, I believe we have a great game in our hands. Kudos, Petit Fabri, you did a great job.

Kukoos: Lost Pets is available on Windows, PS4, and Nintendo Switch. If you like platformers in general, be sure to check out All Achievements and Powerups in Hell Pie, and What is Included in Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series?.