Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Boost mode is on, so the frame rate gets a bit of a boost in this footage.
Knack is a game that I can't figure out who the demographic for this game was. The cutscenes make it look like a kids movie, but the gameplay is incredibly basic and brutally hard for no good reason. I recently picked this up at my local GameXchange for $7 recently having heard about it previously. This is a game I really wanted to like, but frustrating design ideas and lack of gameplay depth make this game a chore to play.
First and foremost, the enemies in this game take off a ton of damage. I'm only playing this game on normal, but no matter how big in size Knack grows, he dies in two or three hits tops. normally this wouldn't be a big deal but the game is filled with cheap-hitting enemies, some of which shoot knack from afar or have attacks that allow them to dash across the play-field for a cheap shot attack on Knack as he's busy fighting other foes.
What doesn't help the situation is Knack's extremely limited attack abilities. When you start the game, Knack has a basic three hit combo with which to attack his foes with. When you end the game, Knack has the same three hit combo with which to attack his foes. That's right, Knack has one combo to use throughout the entire game. On top of his limited combo, he also has a mostly useless air attack that has the smallest range I've ever seen. If you're not almost directly above the enemy you are air attacking, Knack will miss his target.
He is also equipped with a mostly useless dodge mechanic. Like God of War (the original God of War not the new ones), hitting the right analog stick will see Knack dodging out of the way of attacks. However, unlike Kratos, Knack's dodge is just a little too short to be effective. It doesn't work as a dodge, but can be useful to rush in and attack enemy's after staying out of their attack-combo range.
Throughout the game, Knack can break yellow crystals to fill a meter at the bottom of the screen. When the meter is filled, he can then perform super moves. The game is self aware of it's own difficulty in that, when you die, the meter doesn't drain. In fact, in tough areas, it is sometimes better to expend a number of lives to repeatedly break the yellow crystals to fill the meter so you can unleash a super attack on your foes to clear them out in order to progress.
When the game's difficulty curve kicks in, every new area of this game feels like a challenge mode because of the absurd amount of damage enemies dish out, and the sometimes unfair-feeling checkpoints. The frustration could be mitigated if the enemies dropped life pickups or even yellow crystal pickups, but the don't drop anything, making the combat feel all the less rewarding. Any and all life pickups are in predetermined parts of the level. There are some in the few hidden areas in the game, but overall, there's almost no exploration. There are hidden chests which contain gadget parts that once-formed that can enhance Knacks abilities, but I has yet to complete one to see if that improves the game in any way.
By the time I would get to completing a gadget, the tedium of the gameplay would prevent me from doing so. Maybe I need to find all the hidden chests before I give a final verdict to the game, but I can only play this game for a couple of levels before the repetitive gameplay makes me lose interest.
I really wanted to like this game. It has a great art direction that can deceive you into believing there's a higher quality product that your first impression would have you believe, but there really isn't anything more. There are some good ideas like Knack growing into a larger form of himself to where he can deal more damage to enemies, however, it's hampered by the fact that enemies will still kill him in three hits or less. The whole game just feel unbalanced by the exorbitant amount of damage deal by enemies verses the lack of health pickups available and the repetitive lack of any variety to the combat.
The controls are responsive, the graphics are good, the music and voice acting are great. This is a game that look the part of a high quality title. This should be a fun game, but in reality, Knack would make for a below-average PS1 game, and I'm saying this as someone who manages to find enjoyment out of some of the worst games like Perfect Weapon on the PS1. I will play though it and try and find all the gadget parts I can, but as of right now, I'm really not having any fun playing Knack.
Note: I do know Knack 2 exists, and I watched a gameplay sample of it and it looks like a vast improvement over the original. I'll have to pick it up someday.
#knack #ps4pro #gameplay
Boost mode is on, so the frame rate gets a bit of a boost in this footage.
Knack is a game that I can't figure out who the demographic for this game was. The cutscenes make it look like a kids movie, but the gameplay is incredibly basic and brutally hard for no good reason. I recently picked this up at my local GameXchange for $7 recently having heard about it previously. This is a game I really wanted to like, but frustrating design ideas and lack of gameplay depth make this game a chore to play.
First and foremost, the enemies in this game take off a ton of damage. I'm only playing this game on normal, but no matter how big in size Knack grows, he dies in two or three hits tops. normally this wouldn't be a big deal but the game is filled with cheap-hitting enemies, some of which shoot knack from afar or have attacks that allow them to dash across the play-field for a cheap shot attack on Knack as he's busy fighting other foes.
What doesn't help the situation is Knack's extremely limited attack abilities. When you start the game, Knack has a basic three hit combo with which to attack his foes with. When you end the game, Knack has the same three hit combo with which to attack his foes. That's right, Knack has one combo to use throughout the entire game. On top of his limited combo, he also has a mostly useless air attack that has the smallest range I've ever seen. If you're not almost directly above the enemy you are air attacking, Knack will miss his target.
He is also equipped with a mostly useless dodge mechanic. Like God of War (the original God of War not the new ones), hitting the right analog stick will see Knack dodging out of the way of attacks. However, unlike Kratos, Knack's dodge is just a little too short to be effective. It doesn't work as a dodge, but can be useful to rush in and attack enemy's after staying out of their attack-combo range.
Throughout the game, Knack can break yellow crystals to fill a meter at the bottom of the screen. When the meter is filled, he can then perform super moves. The game is self aware of it's own difficulty in that, when you die, the meter doesn't drain. In fact, in tough areas, it is sometimes better to expend a number of lives to repeatedly break the yellow crystals to fill the meter so you can unleash a super attack on your foes to clear them out in order to progress.
When the game's difficulty curve kicks in, every new area of this game feels like a challenge mode because of the absurd amount of damage enemies dish out, and the sometimes unfair-feeling checkpoints. The frustration could be mitigated if the enemies dropped life pickups or even yellow crystal pickups, but the don't drop anything, making the combat feel all the less rewarding. Any and all life pickups are in predetermined parts of the level. There are some in the few hidden areas in the game, but overall, there's almost no exploration. There are hidden chests which contain gadget parts that once-formed that can enhance Knacks abilities, but I has yet to complete one to see if that improves the game in any way.
By the time I would get to completing a gadget, the tedium of the gameplay would prevent me from doing so. Maybe I need to find all the hidden chests before I give a final verdict to the game, but I can only play this game for a couple of levels before the repetitive gameplay makes me lose interest.
I really wanted to like this game. It has a great art direction that can deceive you into believing there's a higher quality product that your first impression would have you believe, but there really isn't anything more. There are some good ideas like Knack growing into a larger form of himself to where he can deal more damage to enemies, however, it's hampered by the fact that enemies will still kill him in three hits or less. The whole game just feel unbalanced by the exorbitant amount of damage deal by enemies verses the lack of health pickups available and the repetitive lack of any variety to the combat.
The controls are responsive, the graphics are good, the music and voice acting are great. This is a game that look the part of a high quality title. This should be a fun game, but in reality, Knack would make for a below-average PS1 game, and I'm saying this as someone who manages to find enjoyment out of some of the worst games like Perfect Weapon on the PS1. I will play though it and try and find all the gadget parts I can, but as of right now, I'm really not having any fun playing Knack.
Note: I do know Knack 2 exists, and I watched a gameplay sample of it and it looks like a vast improvement over the original. I'll have to pick it up someday.
#knack #ps4pro #gameplay
