Jett Rider review

Custodian of the Cosmos

Often, games catapult us to prestigious societal ranks. Whether we’re tearing across the asphalt in exotic sports cars or stepping into the luxurious loafers of a Yakuza boss, our recreations often allow us to live out high-class fantasies. But that’s not the case with Jett Rider.  Barcelona-based Last Chicken Game’s revised title (originally released as 2020’s Willy Jetman: Astromonkey’s Revenge before the studio had a falling out with their publisher) puts players in the role of a hardworking space janitor.

Certainly, Jett hasn’t had the easiest life. Years of menial work were fueled by daydreams of interstellar travel. After eventually landing a position as intergalactic custodian, his AI-piloted ship crash lands on a hostile planet named Gravos. But things are starting to look up when he gathers enough resources to purchase a machine gun from an isolated vending machine.

Waste Management and Wasting Opponents

Progress across Jett Rider is made in two ways. The first involves picking up scattered pieces of debris and taking them to recycling kiosks for a bit of cash. Pay can also be earned by defeating Gravos’ enemies. These come in two types: more threatening adversaries that disappear when defeated and subordinates that tend to travel in groups and repeatedly respawn. Save enough coin, and you’ll eventually be able to afford new weapons or upgrades.

Agreeably, the game employs Metroidvania-style structure to portray Jett’s journey. Advancing into new areas steadily builds an in-game map, with handy highlighting of recycling centers and save points. But Gravos’ muted gravity means you won’t always be hugging the ground like a member of the Belmont family or Samus Aran. A button press sends Jett leaping, and an optional pull of the right trigger sends him soaring skyward, with his jettpack emitting a vapor trail. Agreeably, our hero doesn’t have to worry about fuel supplies. After a few seconds of staying on the ground, the device automatically recharges. And if you’re able to find capsules littered around the planet, his jetpack range will be extended.

Gravity is a Persistent Rival

Like many games that push players downward, you’ll have to get used to gravity. Aligning your horizontal traveling projectiles can be challenging at first, as it’s almost impossible to hover in place. Difficulty also stems from the amount of damage adversaries can inflict. All too often, a few projectiles or even quick contact with an opponent returns Jett to the last save point. Survival on Gravos is testing, and persistence will teach you how to handle the game’s bosses and lethal elements.  Although the game’s controls typically feel spot-on, decisions like using different buttons for picking up and releasing recyclables can be irksome, especially since inputs can’t be remapped.

Fortunately, Jett’s arsenal allows for plenty of resistance. Beyond your trusty machine gun, you’ll acquire weapons like a flamethrower, mine launcher, and even a shuriken gun. While Rider pushes players toward light strategizing, favoring specific firearms against certain enemy types, the balance is intermittently broken. Once you’ve acquired the throwing star-tossing weapon, there’s little incentive to use anything else, because it’s still unmistakably overpowered.

Jett Set

Despite several small blemishes, Jett Rider offers an engaging expedition that usually rejects padding its length. Like the better entries in the action-adventure genre, there’s motivation to push forward, whether it’s the chance to use a giant bolder to squash enemies or the thrill of finding hidden passages filled with resources. While some might bemoan the linearity of the adventure, it’s gratifying to not just chase waypoints or become disoriented in a labyrinthine environment. The downside is that a more autonomous approach lets you fine-tune the difficulty through grinding. Technically, that’s still an option but tackling the same areas can grow tedious.

On Steam Deck, the game runs fluidly, with a visual style reminiscent of those delightful Euro-born titles of the 16-bit era. But this isn’t just a retreat of Super Turrican or Doom Troopers. Although Jett Rider uses detailed sprites to depict the action, there’s a wealth of small visual details that elevate the action. From shooting stars in the backdrop to battles where projectiles and explosions fill the screen, the title offers modest graphical delights. Sonically, the action is complimented by the kind of plucky chiptune soundtrack that solidifies the game’s nostalgic charms.

Jett Rider was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.