A singing axolotl and a magical bunny team up in Billie Bust Up, a retro platformer with rhythmic boss battles and witchy movement abilities

I didn't think I'd see a singing axolotl today, but that's the beauty of videogames: there's always something unexpected to lift your mood. The trailer for Billie Bust Up, which appeared at today's PC Gaming Show Tokyo Direct, shows off the music and platforming in the upcoming animal adventure.

You play as Billie, a bunny with magical abilities. Guided by Aristotle, the singing axolotl, you'll master different powers. Billie can fly on a broomstick just like a witch, and can use an umbrella to glide gracefully like Mary Poppins.

But that's not all, she can run along walls as though she's the Prince of Persia, and uses an assortment of gadgets to get through each level, like bombs, swords, and some sort of projectile launcher—it looks like the umbrella refashioned to shoot gusts of compressed air.

There's still more. Billie can also turn invisible and slide around on water by turning it to ice right as she steps on it. I'm excited to see what kind of platforming challenges will be on offer. Hopefully there will be some where you have to combine multiple movement methods.

Now, I don't know about you, but I often find platforming games can have rather dull boss fights that amount to jumping on a baddie's head three times or chucking some explosives at it. In Billie Bust Up, the fights are rhythmic, so you'll have to use proper timing to defeat the dragons and other foes you'll face. Now I understand why Aristotle is singing during the trailer.

It doesn't have a release date just yet, but you can wishlist Billie Bust Up on Steam if you're a fan of retro platformers.

Check out every game, trailer, and announcement in the PC Gaming Show Tokyo Direct.