if you want to collect all the available
quills (your main currency), TWIT coins
(needed to move past ‘paywalls’ in
the overworld) and hidden extras. This
could become tiresome were Yooka
and Laylee not controlled so well, and
thankfully a wealth of moves from the
duo’s previous 3D adventure translate
well here. Rolling through enemies
as Yooka while Laylee uses him as a
treadmill, for example, is charming
and effective, while butt-slamming
through platforms equally delights.
Plenty of cues are taken from what
worked way back during the golden
age of Nintendo platformers, only now
one of equal quality is on Xbox. The
novelty of this never really wears off.
One final thing to mention about
Impossible Lair’s 20 chapters, and
another way it offers up a modern
spin, is that most can be played in an
entirely different second state. One
alternate version of a level freezes
everything inside, turning it into an ice
stage where fountains now are frozen
solid to block previous paths. Another,
meanwhile, becomes infested by
legions of enemies, giving you
very little time to stand still as
you progress. These secondary spins
on stages are accessed by aiding
nearby characters in the overworld
and give you the chance to boost your
Bee-talion count even more. These
levels are technically the same but
they change up environments enough
that it becomes easy to forget that.Bee’s knees
For as much as Impossible Lair apes
such Nintendo classics as Yoshi’s
Island and Donkey Kong Country,
though, it’s weird that there aren’t
more boss fights included. Only when
finally entering the Impossible Lair
do you even get a whiff of one of
these, but even then it boils down to
defeating Capital B in three variants
of the same encounter. Don’t get us
wrong, there’s plenty of variety as is. It
just feels like a missed opportunity.Lack of boss battles aside, in
Yooka-Laylee And The Impossible
Lair Playtonic has given Xbox players
simply one of the best 2D platformers
on the platform. Inventive level design
is complemented by a challenging but
fair central setup, and being able to
choose when you tackle the ever-
looming Impossible Lair is an inspired
spin on the genre. Yooka and Laylee’s
newest adventure never fails to put
a smile on your face, even when you
play levels for the umpteenth time in
search of that final collectible. QTONIC ZOOM
It won’t take long for
you to end up with
hundreds of quills in
your inventory. These
can be spent on hints
to forge new
pathways in the
charming overworld,
but are primarily used
to purchase tonics.
Tonics are upgrades
that can be swapped
in and out to affect
level difficulty,
introducing such
quirks as bigger eyes
to make enemies
tougher and the
ability to retain your
TWIT coins if you die.
Tonics that make
levels easier will
decrease your quill
multiplier, while brave
players can assign
tonics that let them
go the opposite route.“You could best
it after finishing
the prologue, but
you likely won’t
get very far”
ABOVE The design
is more Donkey
Kong Country
than Banjo-
Kazooie this
time around.
LEFT Sawblades
are just one of
many obstacles
you’re forced to
contend with.OXM VERDICT
Yooka-Laylee
smartly ditches 3D
to instead focus on
perfecting 2D
platforming.9
FAR LEFT Stage
design has a lot
of variety and
depth, not to
mention they all
look distinct.More Xbox news at gamesradar.com/oxm THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE 077