Freedom Planet

Overview

Freedom Planet is a 2D side scrolling platformer developed and published by GalaxyTrail Games. It is heavily inspired by the classic Sonic the Hedgehog games but is also reminiscent of other Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games. The game features two modes of play, Adventure mode and Classic Mode. Adventure Mode offers the same gameplay as Classic Mode but includes a large amount of cutscenes and story that are fully voice acted and animated, Classic Mode is for players who strictly want to play the game. Freedom Planet stars three young ladies as playable characters, Lilac the dragon, Carol the wildcat and Milla the basset hound.

Gameplay

The player controls one of three characters, Lilac, Carol, or Milla, and must platform across levels and battle robot enemies that get in the way. The levels contain loop-the-loops, corkscrews, spring pads and other obstacles and mechanisms that help and hinder the player. Some levels have gates that require special actions in order to pass through, like destroying a crystal or finding a key. Each level has a mini-boss, located about half way through the level and a boss at the end of the level.

The player is allowed to take damage and it is gauged by petals that act as hit points, this meter is located in the upper left corner. Lilac has seven health petals, Carol also has seven health petals and Milla only has health four petals. If the player looses all health petals then a life is lost, lives are indicated in the upper left corner as well. Players can also get shield power-ups, these have different properties based on what color of crystal is smashed. Green is a wood shield, yellow is an earth shield, blue is a water shield, red is a fire shield, silver is a metal shield and rainbow grants invincibility.

Each character has some basic attacks as well as a special attack that is unique to them. The basic attacks change based on the direction being held when the attack button is pushed, they are similar between characters. The special attack is more powerful but depletes the special meter, the meter must refill in order to use the special again, it is located in the upper left corner. Lilac has an air dash, Carol has a rapid kick move and Milla throws a gelatinous energy cube. The characters also have other special characteristics differentiating their play style. Lilac has a double jump, Carol can cling to walls and ride a motorcycle and Milla can fly temporarily by flapping her ears.

Story

The ruthless Lord Brevon crash lands on the planet Avalice, he soon learns of a powerful gemstone, the Kingdom stone, that is powering the three local cities. In order to repair his spacecraft he devises a plan to trick the three cities into fighting with one another so he can steal the Kingdom Stone without there interference and repair his ship. Meanwhile another spacecraft crash lands on Avalice containing Torque the Shellduck. Torque is rescued from the crash by two young ladies, Lilac and Carol who are on there way to see the Kingdom Stone. Torque informs them of Lord Brevons evil ways and the group decides they must protect the Kingdom Stone and thwart Lord Brevon's plans.

Development

The project was conceived by game designer and programmer Steven DiDuro who founded GalaxyTrail games to create the project. It was originally designed to be a Sonic fan project and included Doctor Robotnik/Eggman as the villain and a ring based health system but it was decided it would only limit the project.

A demo for Freedom Planet was initially posted on GalaxyTrail's website in 2012 as a proof of concept. The project was then Kickstarted on January 15, 2013 where it raised $25,472 from 1,105 backers. The title was also placed into Steam Greenlight a day later and was officially Greenlit in August of 2013. The project was officially released around a year later on July 21, 2014. Freedom Planet was announced to release on the Wii U on March, 8 2015, no official date has been scheduled for that release.