*DISCLAIMER: Let me stop promising what will and won't be my last disclaimer, because they'll keep popping up. As I mention with every collection, this review will largely be focusing on the "Phantasy Reverie Series" as a collection, and will not be a blow-for-blow analysis of the games. The quality of the games will be taken into account in some way, but I won't be specifically reviewing the games themselves. If you want to know my opinion on either game in this franchise, you can find those reviews on my profile.*
I've gone on record to say that 3D platformers are my favorite genre of gaming. And beyond a lot of them being fantastic gameplay experiences, many were home to very memorable mascot characters (same with 2D games). Many have continued to stand out and stand tall, while others seem to fade with time and get forgotten about. But where there's a passionate fanbase, there's always the potential for a revival, and this year, one fanbase has finally won. During the February 2022 Nintendo Direct showcase, a remaster collection of the "Klonoa" games, titled "Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series" (yes, it's a hard word to pronounce), was announced alongside A BUNCH of other hype games. It was a huge win for fans of this franchise that has laid quietly since 2008, and a big win for the platformer genre...and for every day that a 3D platformer franchise gets a revival before "Sly Cooper" does, I feel like I age seven years...okay, I'm kidding (but still, bring "Sly Cooper" back). In actuality, I couldn't have been happier with this announcement; sure, I never grew up with "Klonoa," but I'd heard of the character (and loved his design), and I get a bit of a warm, fuzzy feeling when 3D platformers get revived (even if they aren't "Sly Cooper"). Plus, I know "Klonoa" has meant a lot to gamers, so having the series back in a collection for modern platforms? Good news in my book. Hell, the announcement was enough to make me want the collection, so my brother picked it up at launch. After playing through it myself...man, this is a complicated collection to recommend.
The good news is that the "Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series" is that it gives you that same fun "Klonoa" experience that you probably had the first time. Everything about the first two games is here, with all the bells and whistles, and the overall porting job is done pretty well. No real bugs to speak of or anything like that, it feels like the games translate well to the current-gen hardware and don't fall flat like other collections do. And while the remastering job itself is pretty light, some may not be inclined to notice because the games themselves look that good. The overall visual work is solid enough that these games look like they could keep pace with some more modern platformers. All in all, if you're a fan of "Klonoa," this gives you exactly what you could hope for, and having a more accessible version of the games sounds pretty nice.
But despite those good things, I have several issues with this collection that make it really complicated...more than you may expect for such an adorable series. I know I don't usually focus as heavily on the quality of the games in these collections, but in this case, it feels apt; I don't know who to recommend this collection to. As far as new players go, this is a revival of a dormant IP that many probably won't be familiar with, but most importantly, many may not understand what made these games so special in the first place. I said it in my review of the first game, but I feel like a lot of the love for this series is in some way tied to nostalgia, which isn't a bad thing at all, but it's something you won't have if you never experienced the series before. So with new gamers out of the picture, what about the hardcore fans? That's probably who this is made for, right? Well, maybe, but let me start by saying there is pretty much nothing in terms of extra content for returning players. This is one of those collections that just feels like "throwing the games onto a disc," rather than "celebrating the franchise," and thus, we don't get much in the way of bonus content. Beyond that, it feels like little was done with the "remastering" part of this collection so, if you're a hardcore fan, you may not have much reason to buy it outside of "keep the franchise alive." Which sure, may be enough for some, but if you already own these games, there's not much this collection offers that makes them worth buying again.
Overall, I'm not sure what to say in terms of recommending the "Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series" collection. I know that score might look a bit high given some of my negatives about it, but trust and believe that that score is lifted by the fact that the games themselves are good enough. As it is, these platformers are pretty standard to the point of being difficult to recommend for new players, but at the same time, there's not nearly enough here (in terms of bonuses or remastered elements) that make this essential for hardcore fans. I mentioned "keeping the franchise alive" as a reason for buying it, and to be honest, that's all I can think of. Hell, that might NEED to be the reason to buy it; in recent interviews, Bandai Namco has essentially said that the IP will continue to expand if this sells well. So in that regard, if "Klonoa" means a lot to you and you really want to see the franchise continue, buy this collection. Know that you may not be getting an essential package with it, but you can feel good knowing that you did your part to keep the series alive. Hell, even if I didn't love the games, I think "Klonoa" deserves to continue, so if you do too, that's as good a reason as you'll get to buy this thing.
Final rating: 7 out of 10 "Good"