Sequence Breaking with Toki Tori 2 | Making Metroidvanias

Believe it or not, but Toki Tori 2 was one
of the most daring and ingeniously designed

puzzle games of 2013.

I say that because it's a Metroidvania game
where you aren't stopped by doors you can't

open or blocks you can't break. The only thing
stopping you from breaking off the main road

to forge your own path is just basic knowledge
of how the game works.

Before I get to that, let me define a Metroidvania.

Back in the day, most games were split into
levels, and they followed one after the other,

in order. Then games like Metroid came along,
squished all the levels together into one

contiguous world map, and jumbled up the order.

This means that during your adventure you
might come across a door that you can't access

yet, until you unlock a new item that will
let you through, so you now have to retrace

your steps to get back to that obstacle and
bypass it.

There are now loads of these games, including
Metroid and Castlevania of course as well

as Shantae and Shadow Complex and Strider
and Guacamelee and more.

But they all generally do the same thing.
Bits of the world are completely inaccessible

until you get the next power up, meaning these
games aren't truly about exploration at all.

You're still on a predetermined path. Only,
there's a lot more backtracking.

So, enter Toki Tori 2 - a game which does
something quite different.

You only have two abilities in this game - you
can tweet and you can stomp. And that's it.

You never get any more powers or items. You
do learn some songs that let you respawn,

jump to the map screen, take a picture, or
view your location, but they don't actually

unlock any new areas.

Instead of abilities, the game has a complicated
ecosystem of creatures that all act and interact

in different ways, and you advance by manipulating
these critters. You might tweet to move this

platform near to you or use fireflies to disable
these masks.

The main pathway, as much as there is one,
introduces you to these concepts slowly, and

doesn't let you advance until you've got it.
So in this very early section we have to learn

about making bubbles to ride up to this next
area. Along the way, checkpoints linger just

out of view so you know where you should be
going.

But, at any time, you can break off from this
path, even if the majority of first time players

don't even realise that they can.

Take this very early area. We came in from
the left, and it seems like all we can do

is move to the right.

Then again we could lure this bird over here
to get up to here, then use this water to

grow this grass so we sneak past the other
birds, then use this little animal friend

to clear the gap.

But you probably won't because you don't officially
learn about luring birds until this part of

the game, or growing grass until you do this
puzzle, or using those repeater bugs until

you get to this section.

If you manage to do get up here and wander
off to the left, you've reached a part of

the game that most players won't actually
access until much later on. It's sequence

breaking - you know, the way that industrious
players use cheats and glitches to bypass

bits of level - but made official

Here's another example. In this section, we
fall down and our only option is to go left.

The stairs on the right are too steep and
we can't jump, remember. But, we later learn

about herding fireflies, so when we eventually
come back to this area we'll know to bring

these little guys down with us to wake up
this sleepy purple monster, who we'll feed

to the frog, who gives us a bubble to get
up here.

And in this section, these electric critters
are in our way. Later on in the game we'll

get taught how to disable them by stomping
while wet. But maybe you'll figure that out

before you're supposed to and then start to
explore the game on your own terms

That's kind of the magic of Toki Tori 2. Exploration
in this game feels real and organic because

you can discover your own path at any time,
and your options are never limited by your

abilities. If you can't advance, it's only
because you can't work out what you're supposed

to do.

The main path eventually brings you to this
area, where you find that the main goal in

this game is to lure these five frogs to these
warp holes. And you can do that in any order

you like which again, reinforces the sense
of discovery and exploration.

Likewise, one other goal in the game sees
you collecting these shards to activate these

stones to open this gate. And you can collect
them however you like. It's always up to you.

Now I don't think that every game, or even
every Metroidvania, should try this. It's

a ballsy move, because if you don't tune it
just right players can break the order all

over the place, miss vital bits of knowledge,
and get lost or stuck or fed up.

But it's just nice to be trusted with the
way you plot out your adventure for once.

So many games these days hold your hand with
helpful companions, endless tutorials, and

big compasses that point you in the right
direction.

Toki Tori 2 has no tutorials, no words at
all actually outside its logo, and it respects

your intelligence in a very satisfying way.
This one has gone overlooked but I think it

deserves more attention. Don't be fooled by
its cutesy exterior - this PC and Wii U puzzler

is wicked smart, and also devilishly tricky
at times.