A launch title for the PS4, Knack has come in for a fair amount of criticism from all and sundry, who claim the title doesn't do anything substantial enough to make it worthwhile. Most of those people didn't give it a fair shake though, as there's actually a lot to enjoy here. Knack is a perfect example of the hype which surrounds gaming - there was a lot of it for this, and it made it difficult to live up to expectation. The title character himself has the ability to draw ice, metal and other substances into his body, which offers up different mechanics from level to level later in the game. Sure, this isn't the most original premise ever made, and there are likely better platformers out there, but it's still worth a look, and doesn't nearly deserve the apathy it received from the gaming press. If you're a sucker for Pixar movies and animation in general, you'll love the look of Knack himself. It's not just visuals that make it a winner however, it has something a lot of games don't nowadays, that pick-up-and-play quality. Short bursts are where Knack excels, and whilst this isn't one you'll be playing for weeks, that doesn't hurt it. It's hard to pin-point exactly why reviewers were quite so critical, but maybe launching alongside a next-gen console hurt Knack. When critics were looking for jaw-dropping action games, intelligent stories and big set pieces, a rather cute little throwback to the days of the original Playstation were perhaps not what was expected.
