This article was originally published in Italian on Thegamesmachine.it in 2016.
The now-disbanded team that brought us the excellent Another Code and Hotel Dusk on our Nintendo DS (and later made a brief appearance on the Nintendo Wii) is back in the spotlight with Little King’s Story, a rather controversial title but still highly appreciated by a dedicated core of fans—many of whom shuddered at the release of the PS Vita remake developed by Konami. That particular reissue stripped away the original’s fairy-tale-like and whimsical artistic direction, replacing it on Sony’s handheld with a jumbled mix of generic manga influences that utterly failed to do justice to the glorious tale of Corobo, the young king who lends his name to the game. It’s no surprise, then, that when the prospect of a PC port arose, the American publisher XSEED opted for the original version—more in line with the fanbase’s tastes and arguably more deserving of a respectable HD remaster treatment. The problem is that things didn’t go as smoothly as one might hope, but let’s take it one step at a time.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re a seasoned gamer or a newcomer to the genre—Little King’s Story’s first few hours are nothing short of a trial by fire for anyone expecting a Pikmin clone from CING’s production. Unlike Nintendo’s title, Little King’s Story features much clunkier gameplay, sometimes downright frustrating, which was already difficult to handle with the Nunchuk/Wiimote combination and becomes even more impractical with a keyboard and mouse. If you’re truly interested in seeing the credits roll, I strongly advise against using that control scheme. Things improve with a classic gamepad, though not all buttons are utilized—but even then, the problems are just beginning.
The goal of the game is simple: guide the young king in conquering the known kingdom, first by battling quirky demons and super-deformed monsters, and later by waging war against neighboring realms ruled by equally determined sovereigns. Rather than relying on static menus or cursors, Little King’s Story embraces a playful, cartoonish artistic direction that allows the protagonist to literally “throw” his subjects at obstacles and enemies—seasoning it all with a rather shallow management component. This aspect lets you customize your kingdom by constructing houses, barracks, and workshops, ensuring you have a steady supply of followers for your expeditions and unlocking various character classes along the way.
At first, every subject is little more than a “slacker,” unable to specialize due to the lack of available workshops. However, after a few hours—and some well-designed boss fights—gameplay possibilities expand significantly, allowing fledgling rulers to command a wide range of specialists, including soldiers, carpenters, hunters, and more. Naturally, each class comes with strengths and weaknesses, and success hinges on the player’s strategic ability to “throw” and “recall” their followers effectively in battle, ensuring they make it through each day with an ever-growing haul of loot.
Unfortunately, Little King’s Story’s original flaws remain intact, despite the concept being solid on paper. Numerous issues plague the game, from the lack of thorough tutorials—yes, they exist, but they’re incredibly brief—to a control system that makes it difficult to manage active troops efficiently. A prime example of this is the inability to organize subjects by class, forcing players to keep throwing those in the front line until they reach the desired unit. Nintendo’s Pikmin has already proven that a real-time action game with light RTS elements can only work if the player is fully immersed in the on-screen action and has complete control over what’s happening. Sadly, Little King’s Story falls short in this regard. That said, the game still delivers a lighthearted (though not entirely!) adventure with plenty of engaging moments, particularly during battles against the tougher enemies.
Exploration suffers the most due to the control limitations, yet paradoxically, it’s also the most rewarding aspect of the game. Not even the clunky camera can spoil the thrill of claiming victory after a long, grueling battle against… a demon-possessed cow! Adding to the main storyline are various side quests, time-based missions assigned by citizens, destinations to visit to impress rescued princesses, and numerous collectibles scattered throughout the environment or hidden in interactive objects like pots and bushes.
As mentioned earlier, Little King’s Story boasts a charming artistic and aesthetic direction, with pastel-colored visuals and exaggerated, caricatured character designs. The dialogue reinforces the game’s surreal and ironic tone (for instance, the kingdom’s religious leader is a Pastafarian!). Despite an Italian localization riddled with errors, the script itself is well-written and cleverly crafted. However, the game’s visual appeal is undermined by a polygonal model quality so simplistic that it wouldn’t look out of place on a Nintendo 3DS. Even though XSEED has made an effort to clean up textures and bring the game to the fabled 1080p resolution, the technical shortcomings are hard to ignore.
The near-total lack of graphical options is frustrating, as is the baffling choice between playing at 30 FPS (which rarely holds steady even on high-end rigs) or 60 FPS… though the latter is strangely discouraged without any explanation. During my playthrough, I encountered multiple crashes, which severely impacted my experience—already hampered by sudden game overs resulting from my own carelessness and the absence of modern gaming conveniences like autosaves or checkpoints. My advice? Save often, especially after particularly rewarding exploration campaigns. Still, the game’s vibrant colors, quirky environments, and key adventure moments shine through, complemented by a soundtrack featuring famous classical music pieces, including Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D minor, which serves as the game’s main theme.
XSEED brings Little King’s Story to PC—a unique title that sits somewhere between Pikmin and a management sim, capable of captivating anyone willing to look past its many original and newly introduced flaws. The Steam version is barely passable from a technical standpoint and offers the exact same content as the original game—two factors to carefully consider when choosing between this and the Nintendo Wii edition.
