I like to pretend that in my three decades of playing video games, I’ve learned to evaluate a game objectively on the merits of its gameplay, design, and the cohesiveness and quality of its whole. That’s not true, though, as I’ve re-learned after watching the dazzling new trailer for adventure platformer The Eternal Life of Goldman—detailed hand-drawn animations and a promise to whisk me away to a world of whimsy are all you need to secure my wishlist.
A snippet from the game’s official Steam app page perfectly sums up my exact reaction to Goldman in motion:
Remember how, when you were a child, you first saw your first 16-bit platformer and couldn’t believe your eyes? We want you to experience those feelings again – or maybe for the first time.
Thinking on it, I’m certain the gorgeous, detailed animations and classic platforming are hand-crafted to nostalgia-cudgel a very specific subset of gamers, i.e., millennials who grew up watching David the Gnome and Grimm’s Fairy Tale Classics and playing Duck tales on NES. The brief one-minute trailer stirred all sorts of feelings inside me, and I’m embarrassed to admit that I teared up a bit.
None of this, of course, can tell you if the game will be any good. Reserve your judgment if you can, at least for when the demo drops later this February. My own objectiveness has been compromised.
