Balan Wonderworld demo coming to all platforms next week
Square Enix has announced a free demo will be released next week for Balan Wonderworld.
The Balan Wonderworld demo will be available to play from January 28, allowing players to experience two hours of gameplay ahead of its release on March 26.
It can be played with friends and family in local co-op mode or in single-player mode and will be available on each platform that the full game will be released on.
This means you will be able to play it on Steam for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Two players can explore the game as the stars of the show Leo and Emma in local co-op mode, combining abilities from different costumes to access new paths that are unavailable in solo play.
Using a range of costume abilities, players will be able to collect Balan Statues in each stage as well as access the hidden Balan’s Bout mini-games.
The demo will feature three of the twelve worlds in the game. They are as follows:
World 1 – The Man Who Rages Against the Storm - Playable Areas: Act 1, Act 2, Boss Battle
World One is set on a beautiful farm, made up of rolling hills and giant crops. This mysterious world is woven from the memories inside Jose Gallard’s heart, a farmer whose beautiful cornfield is struck by a storm. The boss lurking in the depths of Jose’s world is Barktholomew, the embodiment of Jose’s despair after seeing his cornfield being destroyed.
Make use of a range of costumes to successfully complete this level, including the Jumping Jack costume that allows players to jump to places they just can’t quite reach and the Dainty Dragon costume that uses its fiery breath to clear obstacles in its path.
World 4 – The Boy Who Would be One with the Wind - Playable Areas: Act 1
World Four takes place in a fantastical setting born from the heart of Chang Haoyu and his love of the open sky, where bicycle parts and floating islands of all sizes are scattered through the sky.
Costumes in this world that could come in handy include the Soaring Sheep costume that can float away by puffing up its fluffy fleece and the Aero Acrobat costume that can soar through the sky and aim kicks at balloons and enemies.
World 6 – The Girl and the Kitten - Playable Areas: Act 1
World Six follows the story of Cass Milligan, depicting the town where she meets a cute kitten. In this magical world built from Cass Milligan’s fond memories, candy pieces and books float in the air and there are mysterious buildings full of moving gears.
Costumes that will help players solve mysteries and perform powerful attacks include the Gear Prince costume that can spin switches with the gear on its stomach to operate machinery and the Pumpkin Puncher costume that can shoot a rocket punch.
Players will also be granted access to the Isle of Tims – a base area and gateway to the three mysterious worlds. Here, players will meet the creature Tims and battle Negati. On the Isle of Tims, players can also harvest magical droplets from flower patches found around the island. These droplets can be fed to Tims in order to evolve their abilities.
The game is being worked on by director Yuji Naka (Sonic the Hedgehog franchise creator, Team Sonic co-founder) and character designer, Naoto Ohshima (Sonic the Hedgehog, Doctor Eggman, Team Sonic co-founder). It marks Naka and Ohshima’s first collaboration in 20 years and is the first game from the newly established Balan Company.