Balan Wonderworld, the whimsical new action-platformer from Sonic the Hedgehog and NiGHTs co-creators Yuji Naka and Naoto Ohshima, is getting a sizeable demo next Thursday, 28th January, ahead its full launch in March.
Balan Wonderworld – which is set to release on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and PC – takes place in the mysterious Balan Theatre, where “memories and vistas from the real-world mix with the things that people hold dear”.
The ensuing platform action unfolds across 12 distinct worlds, each created by the worries of a different cast member, and is bolstered by over 80 wearable costumes, all imbued with their own unique abilities – from the fiery breath of a dragon to a sheep’s inflatable, floating fleece.
Next week’s demo launches on all platforms and looks to be a bit of a whopper, promising two hours of play, either solo or with a friend in local co-op, across the opening acts of three worlds.
The first of these takes place on a beautiful farm woven from the memories of a farmer whose cornfield is struck by a storm, while another – formed of bicycle parts and drifting islands – is “born from the heart of Chang Haoyu and his love of the open sky”.