This co-op pixel art platformer originates from Spain and is strongly influenced by the classics of yesteryear, even using this as a selling point. There’s a slight hint of NES classics, with the game’s super-sized cast of characters resembling Mega Man and his 8-bit cohorts, but generally, it cribs from the Master System the most – which was popular across Europe. Alex Kidd in Miracle World is a clear inspiration due to a side-scrolling motorbike stage and one boss battle featuring ‘rock, paper, scissors’, while one stage’s background recalls the seminal Shinobi.
Basureroes: Invasion is a lot more modern on the whole though, featuring a choice of difficulty modes (one with limited lives, another with unlimited) and allowing for four-player co-op. Levels have been designed to be replayed – each featuring five citizens to find, along with a dog to carefully carry to the level’s exit – and once beaten a time trial race mode unlocks. It charts progress well, with an elusive 100% completion target. I put in a smidge over six hours ahead of this review, resulting in 63% completion, to give a ballpark figure for a typical runtime.

The plot is slightly more in-depth than the classics of the ‘80s, although not by much, and is told using simple, twee, dialogue that gives the experience childlike whimsy. When bulbous-headed green-skin aliens attack (think along the lines of Futurama’s Kif) a ragtag bunch of heroes – including a chap with a dustbin on his head, and a man in a banana costume – assemble to save the day. Well, they partly assemble. You’re able to choose your starting character – each ranked in difficulty, seemingly dependent on their attack’s range – and then must rescue the rest of the squad. A sewer base acts as an HQ, which must be returned to periodically to expand the storyline, and characters can be switched between using LB/RB.
Each controls similarly, able to slide, duck, and wall jump – handy for recovering after misjudging a platform. They each have their own unique talents too, meaning you’ll need to switch characters often. Mercifully, considering the roster ends close to double figures, you’ll only need to switch once every couple of minutes. Skills include switch flicking, ceiling climbing, rock excavation via bomb lobbing, and gliding over gaps – with some levels based around just a handful of characters. There’s a decent amount of variety, including a level astride a train, a horizontally scrolling shoot’em up mini-game, a minecart ride, and stages featuring slippery ice, bellowing winds, and lava that can kill with one touch. Every stage ends with a boss fight too, although these aren’t too demanding. Quite a few err on the comedy side of things, such as a battle against a mop-twirling janitor and a mech that breaks down mid-fight. This comedic tone is present throughout, with one cut-scene interrupted by cold callers.

As the adventure starts to wrap up it does begin to lose its way. One of the final characters to be introduced can fire missiles in all directions, allowing them to hover by firing below while jumping, meaning trickier platforming sections can be overcome with little effort and bosses can be killed in seconds by unleashing missile barrages while in proximity. On that subject, there are three(!) boss rush style stages. These are peppered with the occasional platforming challenge – while still featuring citizens and dogs to save – so there is some variety here, even if featuring three boss stages back-to-back does feel like overkill.
But even when such padding starts to occur within the final stretch, Basureroes remains an enjoyable pursuit. It’s light-hearted and joyous throughout, but never feels casual, presenting a fair challenge with hidden depths for those wanting to be tested. There is a bit of bloat – not every boss battle is memorable – and there are also telling signs that English isn’t the first language of the solo developer behind it, but the fact that there is so much content here is also admirable considering it was likely made on a minuscule budget. So, while it isn’t a masterclass of platforming perfection, Basureroes: Invasion should be kept in mind by those hankering for something easy to get into that also features a sideline of silliness.
Javs Game Studios’ Basureroes: Invasion is out 30th Jan on all formats. Published by JanduSoft.