Balan Wonderworld is a fantastical 3D platformer from Nights into Dreams and Sonic creators

Square Enix lifted the curtain on Balan Wonderworld, a musical 3D action-platformer from Sega veterans Yuji Naka and Naoto Ohshima during today's Summer Game Fest. If these names don't ring any bells, chances are the games they worked on will; like Sonic the Hedgehog, Nights into Dreams, Phantasy Star Online, and a bunch more.

Wonderworld is a magical place you visit when your life comes to a crisis point. In your adventure for true happiness, you'll run and bounce across twelve silly colorful stages with the help of 80 different costumes, each with their powers to solve puzzles and fighting monsters.

The trailer gave us a look at a handful of costumes, my favorite so far being Super Streamer, a fire hydrant outfit that lets you shoot water from your hands, and another one that looks eerily like everyone's favorite fast-moving hedgehog. Not surprising seeing Ohshima, who created the design for Sonic and Dr. Eggman, giving the nod to his previous works. We also got a peek at some of Wonderworld boss huge boss fights and, of course, a dance party.

Balan Wonderworld comes to Steam and consoles in Spring 2021.

Jorge Jimenez
Hardware writer, Human Pop-Tart

Jorge is a hardware writer from the enchanted lands of New Jersey. When he's not filling the office with the smell of Pop-Tarts, he's reviewing all sorts of gaming hardware, from laptops with the latest mobile GPUs to gaming chairs with built-in back massagers. He's been covering games and tech for over ten years and has written for Dualshockers, WCCFtech, Tom's Guide, and a bunch of other places on the world wide web. 

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