A few years ago (well more than a few – it was actually, Christ on a bike, thirteen years ago), there was a little game released on the Xbox 360 called Fable Heroes. It was a big-headed (literally) spin-off of Lionhead’s fondly-remembered but over-reaching Fable series, that saw you control caricatures of the in-game cast in a series of hack and slash levels with a few rudimentary puzzles and boss fights thrown in. I bring it up because despite not playing it for the last thirteen years, apparently, Fable Heroes is what I thought of immediately when I began Exalted Studios’ Big Helmet Heroes.
It’s a side-scrolling action game with a cast of adorable little warriors with, obviously, oversized heads. Despite it being crafted with Unreal Engine 5 and therefore absolutely gorgeous, there’s something about Big Helmet Heroes that reminds me of Double Fine, specifically the Xbox puzzle game, The Cave.
You select one of an eventual roster of 29 little hard-nuts, who are separated into four categories. You begin with your standard Warrior, armed with the classic sword and board. Then you’ll unlock the Rogue, who wields two weapons and moves super quickly. After that comes the Brute, a massive dude with a huge hammer, and finally the Monk, who moves like a samurai to juggle enemies. Each successive hero you unlock (by finding them in cages and freeing them) is one of these four archetypes.
The mix is a good one though. One of my favourite elements of Big Helmet Heroes is the animation, as each character moves with unexpected grace and a surprising number of combos conjured by mixing heavy and light attacks. You’ll find a huge array of weapons lying around each stage, too, from simple crossbows to bizarre guns, frying pans, electrified fly-swatters, and even bombs. There’s a lot of creativity on display, which really adds to the charm.
Further spice is added thanks to the inclusion of massive Super attacks that you can unleash when you fill a special gauge by killing enemies. My favourite is probably the Rogue’s, which unleashes a massive blast of energy that melts through mobs in moments.
Most missions are straightforward assaults from left to right, defeating anything that moves. You’ll navigate traps and mazes, hazards and boss arenas, but nothing ever really feels overly challenging. This is a game about fun, first and foremost, which is almost rare these days. Jumping into this with friends evokes memories of a bygone era, for me, before live services dominated the multiplayer space and when games could just be a silly load of old nonsense that made us laugh.
There’s nothing overly subtle in Big Helmet Heroes. It’s a bright, colourful, noisy and brash action game with little need for context, clutter or carry-on. You wade into enemies waving ridiculous weapons, dodge-rolling and leaping out of harm’s way, delivering fluid, satisfying combos until you can drop a Super on everything. It does get a little repetitive after a while, especially if you’re solo and switching between heroes on your lonesome, but with friends it’s a blast.
Occasionally I ran into some bugs and glitches, most notably involving the randomised furniture and breakables littering each room that are easy to get stuck behind or on. But it’s a small price to pay when you can break free of most obstacles by mashing attack. It certainly didn’t dampen my enjoyment too much either way.
Big Helmet Heroes is a silly game, but that’s by design, which makes it not only silly but a ton of fun, too. It’s filled with colour and charm and adorable characters, and is well worth a few hours of your day the next time you’re feeling a little disenchanted with the latest big money open world adventure game.