$24.99Demon Tides Platforming across an open sea
Sail from island to island, rebuild your move-set with talismans and chase a kingdom's buried secrets.
Is Demon Tides worth it?
Demon Tides is worth it if…
- you want a 3D platformer where the movement itself is the toy, and every route is yours to invent
- you like collecting, from talismans and hidden chests to a wardrobe full of outfits, hair dyes and head gear
- you enjoy a colorful, cute world with a funny streak and a soundtrack that carries the whole thing
- you want to race real players' ghosts or leave graffiti in strangers' worlds
- you would rather explore an open sea at your own pace than follow a level list
Screenshots
A move-set you make your own
Beebz can double jump into a bat form, hover as a cyclone, boost, wall-run and long jump, and the game never tells you which combination is correct. Every solution is the right one. Hidden chests and challenges hand out talismans that change how you move: paragliders, hookshots, bubbles and more, each one reshaping what a jump can become.
You hover, then double jump out of it into a long jump that carries you across a gap the cautious way would take three moves to cross. Stack a hookshot on top and you start seeing routes that were invisible an hour ago. The talismans can make later challenges easier too, so how much you lean on them is your call. It is the rare platformer where the build is part of the fun.
An open ocean built for speed
Ragnar's Rock is one seamless sea, and you cross it fast. Dozens of structures and islands dot the water, each holding platforming challenges, hidden chests and secrets, and you can tackle them in roughly whatever order you like. Place your own checkpoints anywhere and return to them after every untimely demise, which takes the sting out of experimentation.
Between islands you swim, and it is worth knowing the stretches of open water can feel empty; the game is at its best once you spot land. Back at your crew's mobile hub you can chill out and buy new items, then head straight back out. The world hides lore and mysteries to unravel, so poking into every nook and cranny pays off beyond the collectibles.
Racing ghosts and leaving your mark
Every course can be raced against the ghosts of other players, so the best completion times are always one run ahead of you. You see exactly where someone took a smarter line than yours, and the talisman system means there is almost always a faster route you have not tried. May the best runner win.
The other half is friendlier: tag a wall with your own graffiti and it appears in other players' worlds, while theirs shows up in yours. It turns the whole ocean into a shared space where someone's silly drawing waits on a wall you were about to jump past. Beyond the first run, NG+ and a Randomizer mode shuffle rewards, enemies and even the weather, so a second playthrough does not play out the same.
Questions you might have?
Do you need to play Demon Turf first?
No. The story is built so new players can jump straight in, and plenty of people have. Returning fans get some easter eggs, but nothing in Demon Tides depends on knowing the earlier games. If you do know Demon Turf, expect a different art direction: the 2D-sprites-in-a-3D-world look is gone, replaced by a fully stylized 3D style.
How hard is it?
It mixes both. There are easy stretches for getting comfortable and genuinely challenging levels once you are, and the talismans let you tune the difficulty yourself: a hookshot and a paraglider make a lot of problems smaller. The boss fights are creative and are a highlight, though some of them can be hard to read visually, with danger markers that blend into the environment.
Is the humor and story any good?
Honestly, that part divides players. Beebz is a likeable lead and the story has its touching moments, but the dialogue leans hard on internet slang and silly jokes: some players find it part of the charm, others want to skip every cutscene. Come for the platforming and the world first, and treat the writing as seasoning rather than the main course.
