Penny’s Big Breakaway review: Fun platformer keeps its momentum going

Penny's Big Breakaway MSRP $30.00 Score Details Pros

Unique control scheme works
Clever yo-yo mechanics
Encourages gameplay mastery

Cons

Unmemorable characters
Bad boss fights

At the end of the first world in Penny’s Big Breakaway, the titular character and her sentient, aggressive yo-yo are presented with their first boss-like encounter: a giant rolling ball of penguins. I had to run for my life, swinging with and riding on my yo-yo at pivotal movements so I wasn’t smushed by the ball of a boss, proving to myself that I understood and had started to master its dual-stick control scheme.

While that all probably sounds ridiculous if you’re unfamiliar with Penny’s Big Breakaway, this encounter is where this platforming adventure from some of the developers behind Sonic Mania started to sing. Evening Star nails the game feel, creating a fluid, momentum-driven platforming experience that controls in a unique, yet intuitive manner. No other platformer looks or feels quite like Penny’s Big Breakaway. While this studio’s first outing doesn’t nail things like its narrative or arena-based boss encounters, the developer pedigree behind Penny’s Big Breakaway is evident in this well-designed, surprise-launched platformer.

Moving on from mania

In Penny’s Big Breakaway, players follow the titular character, a performer forced on the run after her sentient Yo-Yo tears off King Eddie’s clothes during an audition. Throughout the adventure, Penny tries to evade Eddie and his compatriots, and meets an eclectic cast of characters along the way. In subtle ways, I could tell that the story of Penny’s Big Breakaway is processing the feelings of the developers who had to “break away” from Sega for unknown reasons, which resulted in this game instead of Sonic Mania 2.

While that meta theme did catch me by surprise, little else did narratively. Penny’s Big Breakaway is a vibrant and colorful game with a large cast of characters, but outside of Penny, none of their designs stand out as