Hirogami – Unique platformer that lacks depth

If you enjoy independent indie game coverage, consider supporting Indie-Games.eu on Patreon. It helps keep the site independent.

• DEVELOPER: Bandai Namco Studios Singapore Pte. Ltd., Bandai Namco Studios Malaysia Sdn. Bhd.
• PUBLISHER: Kakehashi Games
• PLATFORMS: PC, PlayStation 5
• GENRE: Platformer
• RELEASE DATE: September 3rd, 2025
• STARTING PRICE: 28,99
• REVIEWED VERSION: PC

There’s a lot to like about Hirogami at first glance. Its central premise, built around the ancient Japanese art of origami, isn’t just a cosmetic choice, it’s the very foundation of the gameplay. Coupled with its cute graphics and consistent sense of progression, the game is really fun for the first two hours. Sadly, this initial appeal quickly fades, and the gameplay becomes disappointingly bland and repetitive the more you play.

The game is genuinely good, but I would recommend lowering your expectations. It has a lot of cool ideas and unique mechanics, and the varied level challenges give you plenty to strive for. However, the combat eventually becomes frustrating because of its lack of variety. In other words, it is frequent and repetitive, and it feels like a chore rather than a meaningful part of the game. But Hirogami has its own positives as well, so let’s dive in.

Lack of depth

In Hirogami, you play as Hiro, a master folder tasked with saving a fragile, paper-crafted world from a digital invasion called the Blight. While the premise is interesting and expands over time, the narrative lacks emotion. With no voice acting and text-only dialogue, the characters we see are just bland pieces of paper, making the story feel flat. You end up just moving from one location to another, and nothing unexpected or different ever happens.

“Combining hack-and-slash and bullet-hell, Rogue Labyrinth creates a unique combat system where you turn anything into a projectile to put on a show for a virtual audience.”

If you’re into platformers, you’ll quickly see how little depth this game has compared to other titles. You can beat all 18 levels in about five hours without even trying for 100% completion, which, like in Super Mario games, involves earning three stars and specific objectives for each level. My biggest issue is the constant objective that forces you to complete a level without taking any damage. It’s frustrating and feels unfair, especially when the hitboxes can be so inconsistent.

What’s cool is that levels are designed around the powers and shapes Hiro steadily picks up during his journey. These include an armadillo form that rolls around the map, a frog with a high jump, and an ape that can climb and swing on vines. Each transformation, including the base paper form, brings something new to the table, giving you different ways to solve platforming challenges and fight enemies.

Combat is uninspiring

Essentially, you begin the game with a paper fan that serves as a tool for both combat and environmental puzzles, allowing you to blow enemies away or clear thorny paths. While the combat system is simple, it’s designed to challenge you to use the right form at the right time, as different enemies are more vulnerable to specific attacks. Unfortunately, these transformations don’t feel particularly engaging. I found myself mostly sticking to the armadillo form, which was powerful enough to clear nearly every obstacle and enemy I encountered.

“Combining hack-and-slash and bullet-hell, Rogue Labyrinth creates a unique combat system where you turn anything into a projectile to put on a show for a virtual audience.”

The biggest problem is the lack of enemy variety, which makes every combat encounter feel repetitive very early in the game. You’ll spend most of your time fighting thousands of small black orbs called “Glitchers”. They do have varied abilities as some shoot lasers, others have shields, and some even explode, the combat still gets old fast. You also face the same enemies, such as a frog or armadillo, based on your own transformations.

To make it worse, the hitboxes in these fights can feel really unfair. You’ll lose chunks of health when fighting your hundredth frog enemy, and it’s often not clear why. This is mainly because the camera is so far away, and the game sometimes reacts oddly when you, for instance, clash with another armadillo while in your rolling form.

Platforming is good, but gets repetitive

There are only about four or five actual boss fights in Hirogami, but they’re a welcome change of pace from the game’s repetitive combat. Three of these fights are based on the animal forms you unlock, which is a nice touch. The problem is that they’re all pretty easy. Only the final boss offers a proper challenge and feels truly different from everything else you’ve encountered.

“Combining hack-and-slash and bullet-hell, Rogue Labyrinth creates a unique combat system where you turn anything into a projectile to put on a show for a virtual audience.”

When it comes to platforming, nearly every level forces you to defeat a room full of enemies before you can move on. While there are some interesting platforming ideas, like crushing walls with the armadillo form or using the paper form to glide under spikes, the overall experience isn’t very memorable. The platforming, even when using the special abilities, often feels basic and simple. There are no sections that make you feel satisfied after completing a challenge.

Platforming is manageable, as the game constantly provides new elements to keep you engaged and challenge your problem-solving skills. Also, there is no running in the game, which can make things feel a bit slow. Your normal movement is particularly sluggish. The paper form for gliding and the frog form for high jumps help mitigate this, but walking as Hiro feels like moving at a snail’s pace.

Worth your time?

Adding to the previous points, the game has a decent checkpoint system, and you probably won’t die often since it’s not very difficult. However, you will sometimes fall while platforming because of the fixed camera. Having zero control over the camera, aside from a slight pan, will lead to many cheap-feeling deaths where you simply couldn’t tell where you were jumping.

You also unlock certain upgrades and abilities as you play, but they don’t add much excitement. Most of them are repetitive, like simply gaining more HP. Some are even unlocked automatically without needing to be purchased. The in-game currency you earn is primarily used to buy gallery images.

Despite its flaws, the art style is a true visual feast. Every element, from the characters and enemies to the landscapes, is designed to look as though it were crafted from folded paper. Textures have a distinct, tactile feel, and the folding and unfolding animations are fluid. Environmental elements also sway, and respond to your movements, giving the world a sense of life and fragility.

A lot of dedication and effort went into this game, and it’s clear in how naturally everything flows. However, it’s very lacking in both depth and content. As mentioned earlier, it’s not a bad game, but it’s not what you’d expect from a platformer that should keep you hooked. It starts strong but loses its appeal the more you play. For that reason, I would recommend picking it up when it’s on sale.

Review copy provided by the publisher