Yoku's Island Express

I just finished Yoku's Island Express, getting every achievement bar 1. It's a game that blends metroidvania elements with pinball. I bought Yoku's years ago in the Stand With Ukrain Humble Bundle and only just got around to playing it, so I didn't really know what I was getting into when I started playing it a week ago.

I've not really played any pinball games outside of 3D Pinall Space Cadet shipped with some older Windows release and Pokemon Pinball, both around when I was a child. Man does this game integrate pinball and metroidvania really well. There aren't any combat encounters outside of boss fights. Instead, the challenge is in navigating the work with pinball-esque paddles and platforms, and puzzles that are each their own pinball machine.

The story is the main downside here as it isn't amazing. It's mostly window-dressing and an excuse for the gameplay. There are no compelling characters or reasons for Yoku to be doing what you do in the game. Gameplay is king on Mokumana Island.

It came in at just the right length at a little over 10 hours for me with 97% completion. The soundtrack is great too. I'm tempted to buy it (here's a couple of samples for anyone interested: and ). I'd definitely recommend the game for anyone who hasn't tried it yet and want a chill, unique metroidvania.

What are you favourite games that blend unrelated genres or game types together?

I just finished Yoku's Island Express, getting every achievement bar 1. I've not really played any pinball games outside of 3D Pinall Space Cadet shipped with some older Windows release and Pokemon Pinball, both from when I was a child. I bought Yoku's years ago (I think in a humble bundle) and only just got around to playing it, so I didn't really know what I was getting into when I started playing it a week ago. Man does this game integrate pinball and metroidvania really well. It came in at just the right length too at a little over 10 hours for me with 97% completion. The soundtrack is great too. I'm tempted to buy it. I'd definitely recommend the game for anyone who hasn't tried it yet and want a chill, unique metroidvania.

Playing Yoku's gets me excited for a similar game I noticed called coming out later this year. It's also a metroidvania pinball game, but looks like it leans a lot more into being a pinball game than a platformer with pinball elements. The Steam store page even calls itself a "pinballvania".

Does anyone have any suggestions for metroidvanias that are blended with other genres or game-types?

Unique pinball metroidvania, fantastic

Great unique pinball metroidvania

Bought the key when I actually already own it 😂.

Congrats to the first to claim. My mistake is your reward!

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I am giving away my all time favourite Indie game title.

Tell me your favourite indie game and why I should play it.

Winner will be picked around 15:00 CET tomorrow

Thank you all for the great indie suggestions, loads of them I already own/played. One of them stood out to me which is , thanks for the great suggestion, will look into the game. And congrats, you win the giveaway!

This game is fantastic and doesn't get discussed very much. I dismissed it when I heard it was a metroidvania-pinball-platformer, that just sounds dumb but you owe it to yourself to at least download the demo and give it a shot. Can anyone chime in on their experience with this game?

Hi guys! i am playing on nintendo switch and both games are on sale, i am picking a game with golden coins so i am wondering, wich one is better?

Monster Sanctuary or Yoku's Island Express ?

One person per game. Convince me why you deserve it more then other contestants any way you want. Will pick winners in a few days.

Edit:winners are RagnaTheMasked and the_noblesteed

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I just finished everything in this game( in just under 10 hours for those who care) and holy shit what a good game! I hadn't been that immersed in a game in awhile. The pinball mechanic is really fun and well executed! A bunch of stuff to do and collect without feeling too grindy( slight exception to the scarabs, they can be a bit much if you dont grab them along the way) The atmosphere is cute and endearing, with a small amount of darker tones in there. Think Ori vibes but more light-hearted. Everyone says its a great game, but I enjoyed it way more then i was expecting too. Super worth a play if you saw the mechanics and went meh, like i did at first, or you just forgot about it or something.

Cheers

It's on sale for $5 on PSN. Is it any good? The review scores are pretty high but I almost never see this game discussed here or at all when people recommend MVs. Also, how long or replayable is it? HLTB averages it at 5 hours.

Edit: Thanks everybody! Went ahead and bought it.

Namely; it's a fun, charming and accessible way to enjoy something I previously had no interest in whatsoever. It's also a solid metroidvania to boot, including a sprawling and secret-laden world. Can't recommend this one enough.

Yoku's Island Express (2018)

Developer: Villa Gorilla

Genre: Pinball, Metroidvania

Platform: PC, PS4/5, Xbox One/X/S, NSW

Why should you care: Yoku is notable for its quite unique genre mix - it's not every day you see a metroidvania/pinball hybrid. With its cute art style, simple but not simplistic gameplay and plenty of secrets to find it certainly fits many player's boxes to be a good 'cozy' game.

What is GotM?

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If you want to learn more & participate, that's great, you can join the subreddit's Discord (link in the sidebar) to do that! However, if you only want to discuss the title picked this month in this thread, that's cool too.

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I picked this up while it was on sale and it's a phenomenal game. A platformer with pinball mechanics, inside a metroidvania style map makes for a truly unique experience. It's quite a looker too, very vivid and colorful with a lot of detail paid to the environments. It's become one of my favorite games on the switch, and makes for a great portable game as well.

If you haven't heard of it, give the demo a shot. It's very, very good:

I finally made it to 30 Perfect Games
Yokus Island Express was fine but nothing special i would say
High on Life was a funny fps Game if you like the humour (its basically like Rick and Morty). It was a bit too easy... i cant remember if i died even once

So I have been playing Yoku's Island Express and I am amazed! This game is just SO good! While being one of the weirdest platformers I have ever tried (it mixes platforming with pinball in a really fantastic way), it also entertains the joy of exploration better than most metroidvanias out there. For me, this game has to be put all the way up there with Hollow Knight and Metroid Dread. It's such a chill and cool and truly original metroidvania experience and I'm deeply in love with it. I'm about half way (I think) in Yoku's Island Express and I don't ever want it to be over. This game! <3

Downloaded this last week for $12 on sale. What a steal! Easily worth the $20 it's normally listed at if you don't want to wait for a sale. I'm about 70% through and have enjoyed it immensely! I originally found navigation a little tricky, but once you learn your way around that's not really an issue. The gameplay is lovely though! If you're considering this, do yourself a favour and get it!

That is all. :-)