Mechaconda comes to us from Brazilian solo developer NATO Games, aka Renato Gomes Marcacini. Do you see? They have a limited back catalogue to use as a barometer of quality, with their one prior game being Deep Deep Deep Nightmare. Going by the lack of reviews online, it didn’t generate much buzz. Fellow Brazilians QUByte are behind Mechaconda‘s console rollout, their presence swelling the credits by multiple factors.
The main antagonist, Doctor Evil (no, not that one), is out to annoy us in much the same way Michael McIntyre does. Your task is to see him off in the titular Mechaconda by facing hordes of enemies and collecting items to upgrade your mechanical snake.
On the face of it, it is a little like the classic Nokia 3310 game Snake writ large, but unlike the legendary monochrome time-waster of yore, you’re picking off enemies by shooting them. Except in this case, you control the head as a sort of pilot, with your segments containing various weapon or shield modules. There’s even a blank module, though why you’d choose that over a useful weapon is beyond me. You wrap around the screen at least, but there are also hazards to avoid as well as enemies.
Stylistically and musically, it’s pretty clear that Mechaconda is aping the utterly essential Brotato. The aping part in itself is no bad thing if the execution is pretty much there. But unlike Brotato, Mechaconda doesn’t exactly stick the landing.
One hit on your head, and if you only have one module otherwise, you’re done. Game Over. It’s as unforgiving as any number of classic shoot-’em-ups. If you have multiple modules, they become scattered, so you’re essentially defenceless until you retrieve them. You can jump, but the enemies are still on you faster than a parkrunner is on free post-run cakes, and then it’s Game Over again. The mechanics don’t quite work.
It’s not helped by the fact that the standard campaign mode trickles out the really useful modules at a rate that is far too slow for our liking. There’s also little variation in what’s provided offensively: either the faster single shot or the rather slower triple shot. You’re unlikely to even make it to the end of the set of levels and face a boss.
At least give us a few continues to help us along. But no, another Game Over it is. Our goodwill to see out the campaign mode was as diminished as England’s chances in the World Cup when they subbed five defenders against Argentina.
I only managed to encounter a few bosses by way of the boss rush mode. That’s how unforgiving Mechaconda is. You stand a better chance there, as you have a decent loadout to start with, as opposed to a single peashooter. Similarly, I only got to see the other weapon modules by way of the Roguelike mode, where you’re granted randomised weapon modules. Why this isn’t the default mode is a mystery.
The worst thing I found, and on the face of it the most baffling thing, is that in what is essentially an auto-shooter, you must hold down the square button to fire (on PS5 at least). It isn’t like ammunition is limited here, so there’s no real reason for it.
It’s telling that I hardly played this after the Platinum trophy unlocked, despite multiple attempts to give it another chance. The core mechanic isn’t compelling enough, and the fact that your modules are scattered when you take a hit, leaving you vulnerable to a quick death and another Game Over, is a massive barrier to persevering. Go play Brotato instead.
NATO Games’ Mechaconda is out on 30th July on all modern formats via QUByte Interactive.