Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is a very enjoyable speedrun-focused platformer with plenty of collectibles and genre clichés. It isn't revolutionary to platformers, and it runs very short, but if you don't mind the price tag, it's well worth a try.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is an action-adventure game that follows a different concept from its predecessor and does a very good job at creating a fun and accessible experience to both newcomers and more seasoned players alike. While the difficulty curve can sometimes feel unbalanced, Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara brings an exciting sense of exploration and the game's competition dynamic between pirates helps with making it a captivating adventure that gained its place in the Nintendo Switch.”

“KOA and the Five Pirates of Mara is a simple 3D platformer that is available on many platforms. It can be some nice simple platforming fun to play with a younger family member. Whilst not a challenging title, KOA features plenty of charm and a cute presentation.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is a platformer straight out of the PlayStation 2 era and whether that is a good or bad thing is up to you to decide. While the gameplay and visuals are pretty basic, I enjoyed running and jumping through these levels for the few hours that they lasted.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara isn’t exactly a bold reinvention of the 3D platformer, but it repeatedly proves that it’s got it where it counts. Smooth controls, decent level variety, and lots of collectibles all make this one a fairly easy recommendation, even if it is a little simplistic looking. If you're after 7-10 hours of solid, colourful 3D platforming, we’d suggest giving this one a shot.”

“The best elements of Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara come from its decent play time, amount of content, and attention to movement options. The game isn’t super long but offers a good amount for what the game is. To add to that, there are different goals with collectibles and goal times for each stage. Then having the option to blaze through stages with the roll jump or take things more casually with the standard run allows for different play styles for different scenarios.”

“Koa and The Five Pirates of Mara is an adorable game that is trying its hardest to pay homage to the old mascot platformers of the past, but sadly doesn’t get there and instead lands flat on its face. The game is definitely not for the hardcore platformer fan but is instead a great game to give to their younger sibling so that they can get a taste of the genre or develop a rage-quitting habit.”

“Kao and the Five Pirates of Mara is a stunning looking, decent platformer with heart, charm and fun to be had. Unfortunately it all feels quite simplistic, stutters and stammers, controls awkwardly, and frankly, other games have just done it all so much better.”

“I do think that Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is worth it for a casual player, since it won't suit any pro player who wants a super challenge, but if you just want to relax, or even if it's for kids, it will be very comfortable and welcoming.”

“As a spin-off of a highly underrated game, Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is a lovely 3D platformer that's full of charm and heart.”

“The game is full of personality, energy and fun. This platform title takes very good references and shows again the development potential that exists in Spain.”

“This game is one of the best platformers I've played recently, taking some great content from nostalgic 3D platformers.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara succeeds in its stated goals: to offer a relaxing platforming experience within the reach of all abilities, from toddlers to speedrun lovers. Despite this, it is good to be aware of the production's limitations: the level design is rather ordinary, the camera suffers from worrying lapses, and the overall difficulty is calibrated downward. With this full awareness of merits and limitations, Koa and Napopo's pirate adventure can be a nice pastime on hot summer days.”

“Leaving the door open for future Mara adventures, I think that these characters really lend themselves to different genres and experiences. Even if I didn't pick up on many of the callbacks to Summer in Mara, I could tell that the developers really like these characters and this world they've created. Perhaps it's time to explore the RTS or RPG genre in Mara?.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is a carefree and wholesome platformer with lots of sights to see, shiny things to collect and optional speed runs to challenge yourself. It’s a balanced platformer that’s sure to scratch that collecting itch, wrapped in a neat island adventure package.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is a decent, albeit very basic platformer that does enough to be mildly entertaining, but not enough to have a lasting presence.”

“Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is an opportunity to revisit the world of Summer in Mara but now as a 3D platform game very "nintendero" and without many innovations, but varied and entertaining and with a control system, already seen in Mail Mole, designed with speedruns in mind. You will enjoy them more if you played Summer in Mara.”