A novel closed beta test for the open-world dressing game Infinity Nikki is currently underway for PC and mobile devices. Ahead of this, IGN had the opportunity to check out a brand novel area of Miraland’s comprehensive map, playing through two fun novel dungeons and a challenging boss fight, as well as trying out useful novel skills that aid Nikki and her faithful feline friend Momo navigate the lush open world.
The novel locations I visited were Stoneville and Stonewoods Abandoned District. They extend west of Wishfield, which we explored in the previous demo. Unlike Wishfield, which was full of lush forests, these are rugged mountainous areas with exposed rocks and soaring cliffs. These iconic cliffs are called Stonewoods, and on the map you can see that these lines of Stonewoods of varying heights sit atop a huge lake (or maybe even the ocean).
Fabric dyeing and weaving flourish in Stoneville, and dazzling lavender flowers cover the foothills slopes. Here and there I saw flower growers handling dyeing materials in the fields, giving us a glimpse of life in Miralanda as they went about their work.
We also saw novel creatures in these areas for the first time. Take, for example, the Celestial Monarch, a huge bird that rests in the middle of the Stone Forest. Brush it while wearing the appropriate Wonder outfit and the tamed bird will allow Nikki to fly on its back through the sky.
Platforming is at the heart of the gameplay here, as deputy director Kentaro Tominaga told IGN in a recent interview. While simply getting to the top of the Stone Forest may seem impossible, the area is dotted with mechanisms to aid you get there, such as trampolines with vast leaves all around, Catapult Seals that launch Nikki into the air, and more. You will find that it is surprisingly basic to climb high.
Reach the top and just beyond the chunky fog you’ll be able to see another Stonewoods. As with any good open world game, you may have no idea how to get there at first, but you’ll enjoy some time figuring out how you’ll do it. The novel Flower Memory Miracle outfit will come in handy in areas filled with locations like this, as it allows Nikki to gracefully glide long distances across the sky.
Nikki’s regular jumps may be higher and her fall speed slower thanks to the previously revealed Bubbly Voyage Miracle Outfit, but this novel outfit mainly allows her to maintain her height and glide for a long time after jumping from a high place, similar to the paraglider in The Legend of Zelda : Breath of the Wild. I was trying to see what would happen if I flew towards a distant Stonewoods like the one I just mentioned, and I discovered rings in the air that you could fly through to speed up the movement of the Floral Memory suit, allowing me to approach at quite a high speed . There were also items between the boost rings that extended the cast time of the skill, and in the blink of an eye Nikki reached the Stone Forests that seemed so far away.
Platforming becomes even more significant in Stonewoods Abandoned District due to its extreme verticality. This is because with all the Stonewoods on the map, it becomes even more significant to float the platforms to a high spot, slide down using the Memory Flower, and then arrive at a novel location. While previously in Wishfield we experienced plenty of fun exploration, a variety of outfits, a fully functional photo mode, and more, these novel areas further expressed what makes Infinity Nikki unique as an open-world platformer.
We haven’t seen any humans in the harsh environment of the Stonewoods Abandoned District, but there are cloth-covered creatures resembling ghosts or cloth ghosts. Their village has a bit of a Halloween feel to it, not the scary but spooky theme that came to the fore in the area’s novel dungeon.
Enter the dungeon and you will be greeted by a train full of cargo. Halloween ghosts made of vast sheets sit among the goods. But as the train begins to move, the apparently dead spirits spring into action and try to capture Nikki. It’s a typical situation you see in the movies, where Nikki has to run and jump to escape the ghosts while simultaneously heading to the locomotive in front to stop the runaway train.
Nikki gets carried away if the ghosts catch her, forcing you to press the spacebar to escape – but if you fall off the train while trying to escape, you’ll fall onto the tracks and take damage. Coupled with the immersion in the situation on the roof of a moving train, my heart was pounding until I reached the end.
In another dungeon, Nikki and Momo explored underground caves connected by wooden transport carts on rails, with platform elements divided into stimulating roller coaster-like sections.
In the boss fight, Nikki fights a giant feathered bird monster in the center of the village in the Stonewoods Abandoned District. He wears bulky chains and has a vast purple jewel buried in the crown on top of his head. Its fluffy appearance, sparkling jewels and slightly creepy appearance are both unique and exactly what you would expect from Infinity Nikki. To defeat him, you must jump onto the step-like platforms he creates to reach the top of his head, jump into the air, and perform a ground slam to deal direct damage to the gem.
It takes three successful hits to defeat the boss, but this is easier said than done. The boss’s attack patterns change after each successful attack to keep the player on edge, shooting beams from platforms or summoning crowds of low-level monsters. I managed to beat him only after several tries.
With charming graphics, carefully designed exploration stages, and solid action, the novel areas we were able to try gave us a glimpse of the variety that Infinity Nikki has to offer.
