14 DAY TRIAL // 
Heidelberg 1693 looks like Ghosts ’n Goblins on acid. Instead of a knight you have musketeer, instead of an armor you have a feathered hat and a mustache, instead of a sword and lance you have to rely on your musket and rapier, and instead of a princess you have several ladies willing to succumb to your charms.
Still, cleaving your way through undead armies more than willing to take a bite out of you is as challenging as it is satisfying. After its initial launch on Steam, the game is now available for the console players to try this interesting mix of old school vibes and new game mechanics.
When I first saw Heidelberg 1693, I was instantly overcome by a nostalgia for classic platformers that once upon a time were available only as arcade cabinets. Visually the game takes you back to those times but adds new elements to the classic formula, keeping in an attempt to keep things fresh. It does not revolutionize the genre, but it offers a memorable experience that starts with a story that feels like a grotesque parody of the novel written by Alexandre Dumas.
You will play a lonely musketeer who must face an army of undead creatures on his mission given by Louis the 14th. The Sun King in his endless kindness and compassion sends you to slay the Moon King, who is actually his German cousin. The assassination mission turns into a twisted horror story set in the late 17th century Germany, where our hero has to slay zombies, demons, and other nightmarish creatures along with the occasional German soldiers.
The story itself is a very interesting mix of historical facts and characters with occult lore and a lot of blood and gore. Yet it is just an excuse to make your way through 2D levels, by killing almost everything that you encounter from simple zombies to flying skulls. And just as any classic arcade game, Heidelberg 1693 challenges you to accomplish this task with panache and by really putting your skills and patience to the test.
Your HP as your ammo is extremely limited, so you will have to be careful about how you tackle all the hazards that you will encounter. While your trusty rapier does a good job in close combat, getting close to the enemy is often a tall order. So, you will have to learn to precisely aim your musket for which you can only carry 5 rounds. Moreover, after each round the musket needs to be reloaded manually, a process that takes a couple of seconds, and the gun also needs to be aimed precisely, without any trajectory guidance whatsoever.
The checkpoints are few and far between but succumbing to your enemies also means losing everything you have carried with you, including the points you have gathered. Being old-school to the bone, the game tracks your progress with a point system not unlike the leaderboards of the arcade cabinets. When you die, you have to start all over again and your score goes down to 0.
When you finally figure out your life as a musketeer, you will be prepared to face the bosses and eventually return to locations already visited to discover alternate paths and open previously closed doors. You will also want to look out for potential love interests, since each new girlfriend you meet adds an extra heart to your limited HP pool. And because the game is very difficult even on normal settings, you will need every advantage you can get. But even so, be prepared to die a lot – this process is inevitable in figuring out enemy patterns.
There was a lot of effort put into the game mechanics and it shows. The zombies are actually nothing to be afraid of, since they are as dumb as they come, and they even eat each other. The enemy soldiers are a bit tougher, but their pattern is also easy to figure out. But the flying skulls of the Moon King wreaking havoc on you since the first stages are already the building blocks of nightmare, having multiple attack phases and a seemingly random pattern. Compared even to bosses, these nightmarish creatures are easily the hardest to beat and definitely the most annoying part of the game.
Just like in many other classic arcade games you will always feel under equipped and overwhelmed. But this is why every victory feels so satisfying. Heidelberg 1693 forces you to pay attention and learn how you can use its mechanics to your advantage. And dying literally means starting over because you lose even the upgrades you have collected. So, you need a lot of patience and getting good is part of the process.
The graphics of the game create a great atmosphere that takes us back to the 90’s. The pixelated and colorful visuals are very far from today’s standards yet are undeniably beautiful. On PS5 a big plus is the existence of the 60 and 120 fps modes. The audio part becomes annoyingly quiet very fast. At first, it’s fun to hear the zombies growling from the speaker of your controller, but after a couple of levels it becomes too much. Compared with the repetitive and not very inspired soundtrack, the audio design is the weakest point of the game.
The Good
- New game mechanics like the musket
- Varied and difficult opponents
- High replay value
The Bad
- Uninspired boss fights
- Exhausting audio design
- Very steep learning curve
Conclusion
Even though the musket mechanic is fresh and enjoyable, the game itself does not reinvent the classic formula. Those who remember fondly Castlevania or Ghost ’n Goblins will have a blast playing Heidelberg 1693, and the chance to revisit their childhood traumas.
Review code was provided by the publisher.
