The gameplay in OlliOlli World was already pretty much out of this world but with the arrival of Void Riders we go above and beyond and into the void.
Out of this universe
OlliOlli World is an excellent 2D skate game building on previous entries and maxing out for this 3rd installment. OlliOlli World was intended as a reboot to take a giant leap forward and be able to make the transition from an indie game to a nearly triple-A version. The review for the initial OlliOlli World release can be found here. This review will focus on the first expansion titled Void Riders. The action in OlliOlli World already felt freakishly god-like with over-the-top grinds, jumps, and death-defying wall runs. Void Riders adds an alien element to top things off. With the arrival of Void Riders, the Nebulord becomes the next “boss” to impress after owning the whole of Radlandia
Beam me up
All around Radlandia’s map new challenges appear. These challenges keep the original theme of the region they are based in but add new “out of this universe” elements. The biggest addition with Void Riders is the alien beams. These pinkish beams defy gravity even more. If you get caught in a beam and perform a grab trick, the beam “pulls” you upward. This mechanic feels quite strange at first. Linking the runs with these beams in the mix took me quite some time to adapt to. Once I got the rhythm down the “usual” runs became even more epic. This interesting new take on the original action available in the base game really takes it to the next step. Difficulty-wise this adds another “tier” making it challenging again for those who have mastered the game by now.
Some beams don’t take the player to higher places but pull on elements of the course instead. This allows for the course to be dynamic and adds even more movement to the game. On some runs, they went a bit overboard with rising elements of the course emerging from water making it guesswork where you could land. I felt these passages were pretty unforgiving and a bit too much “trial and error” to my personal liking. When things moved under my skateboard I could deal with them just fine but when I had to take a leap of faith it felt a bit too much luck based.
Enter the void
With many extra challenges added to Radlandia you’ll have plenty to shred on. The “void” challenges are all grouped in a certain region. Completing a set of challenges opens up the actual void. When entering the void you’ll get transferred to an even more out-of-this-world setting. Conquering this new “region” is achieved by impressing the Nebulord in an awesome final “session” on what I found the best course in the whole game putting you through a real test of your skills. This epic ending of Void Riders left me satisfied and longing for the next expansion.
Conclusion
OlliOlli World: Void Riders adds a nice chunk of extra content to the game. The expansion adds a new mechanic, new outfits, and a new region to up the originality and the difficulty. Don’t miss out on the expansion if you were already a fan of the base game.
