Yooka-Laylee provides a very compelling reason why the 1990s collect-a-thon platformer is due for a comeback. It’s got massive amounts of random things to collect, as well as heaping piles of charm. But with its 90s sensibilities comes a few flaws — one of which is the game’s sloppy controls. In the early parts of the game, this can be a real roadblock to truly enjoying the game’s beautiful environments.
Thankfully, before you reach the second world, Glitterglaze Glacier, you’ll meet your good buddy Trowzers, who bestows upon you a wondrous gift, the Glide move. And once you have Glide, the entire game changes.
What was once a frustrating leap of faith now becomes a simple-to-reach platform. Fall damage becomes a thing of the past rather than a constant battle. Areas once out of reach suddenly become accessible. The sloppy controls just stop mattering, because making tricky platform jumps is suddenly a cakewalk.
I get that keeping Glide locked behind a little bit of a progression wall made sense from a level design standpoint, because the way skills unlock creates a Metroidvania structure to the game. You’ll constantly be unlocking new skills, which allow you to circle back to old areas and access more things than you could the last time you were there. Still, this one move is such a game-changer — seriously, the whole game feels different once you’ve acquired it — that it’s strange it wasn’t part of your arsenal from the very beginning.
If you’re at all frustrated by Yooka-Laylee‘s first world (I admit that I was, from time to time), I suggest toughing it out until you get the Glide move. Once you do, you’ll unlock the game’s true potential, and you’ll probably find yourself swearing a whole lot less too.
