Commander Keen was an icon of PC gaming back in the day. Before Wolfenstein and DOOM, these platformers were what put id Software on the map and made people take notice. People look back on them fondly and that may be an issue. The fact of the matter is that the games are dated, and that makes any re-release stand out in a bad way. This is the case of Commander Keen in Keen Dreams on Nintendo Switch.
Commander Keen in Keen Dreams is a dated experience, with poor controls by today’s standards, annoying enemy AI and poor hit detection. Just because someone was groundbreaking back in the day, does not mean it is still excellent tom play. The more I played of Keen Dreams, the more I began to hate myself for agreeing to play this.
Keen Dreams is a standard platformer for the PC from the DOS days. What this means is that you shouldn’t expect the smooth experience of a Mario game but rather a horrifically slow experience where you are never sure what move to make. The collision detection doesn’t register properly and that affect attacking enemies and making jumps. The jumps in particular feel just wrong, as if the game is just one second out of sync with the controls.
Commander Keen may have been a big deal back in the day, but this game is a reminder that some experiences are best left in the past. Avoid this on Switch at all cost.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided