JustAxe is one of those games that takes me back to the early days of Flash games on Newgrounds or Kongregate. It’s a straightforward platformer that carries with it that nostalgic Flash-like fluidity in its controls. However, if you’ve never played these kinds of games before, the sluggishness and awkward physics might be off-putting. In 2024, for a console release, these aspects feel a bit dated.
Take the enemies, for instance. They’ll relentlessly chase little Martha, the character you control, throughout each level. They’re so determined that they’ll even stumble into traps or fall into crevices in their bid to catch up with her. When they finally do manage to strike, Martha is flung unrealistically far, embodying the quirky physics you might remember from those old Flash games.
When it comes to maneuvering Martha, you get a strong sense of those same Flash-game physics. She can run, jump, and swing her trusty axe, but somehow the controls lack the smoothness you’d expect. One prime example is a chase level where you would expect falling into a spiky pit to mean game over. But instead, Martha just bounces on those spikes, taking damage with each bounce—it’s quirks like this that make the game feel a bit rough around the edges.
On the bright side, JustAxe is only about a three-hour adventure that can be wrapped up in a single sitting. Its narrative is pretty thin, but that’s par for the course with these types of games. It’s really suited for times when you’re just looking to kill a bit of time, like on a long commute or during a dull family dinner. At least in those moments, focusing on getting past the game’s frustrating levels and tricky enemies provides a brief escape from reality.
This review is based on a retail copy of the game, kindly provided by the publisher.
