About The Game

In Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia, the peace of the Palombian jungle is shattered by a "cursed dance." A malevolent melody, orchestrated by the returning Mummy Queen, has forced the local wildlife into a state of uncontrollable, chaotic dancing. Players take control of three distinct Marsupilamis—Twister, Punch, and Hope—each bringing their own unique playstyle to this 2.5D platformer. Whether jumping across vibrant jungle canopies or navigating bustling cityscapes, you must platform your way to the Mummy Queen’s hideout to silence the beat before the chaos becomes permanent.

History and Inspiration

The Marsupilami has been a staple of Franco-Belgian culture since its debut in 1952 within André Franquin’s Spirou & Fantasio. Created as a legendary creature of the Palombian jungle, the character eventually outgrew its role as a sidekick, launching into its own successful spin-off comic series by Batem and others. Over the decades, the franchise has morphed into a true multimedia titan, featuring multiple animated series and even a 2012 live-action feature film.

The character's history in gaming is equally varied. Fans of the 90s era may remember the 1996 Sega Genesis title, a traditional side-scroller that, while charming, was often hampered by stiff controls. After a long hiatus, the property saw a triumphant modern return in 2021 with Marsupilami: Hoobadventure. That title was a surprise hit that many critics favorably compared to Donkey Kong Country Returns for its tight, kinetic platforming. With Salsa Palombia, Ocellus Services is looking to iterate on that success by deepening the character-specific mechanics and introducing a rhythmic, music-themed narrative hook that leans into the franchise's penchant for slapstick humor and high-energy adventure.

Critical Discourse and Player Feedback

The community response to the announcement and the subsequent demo release has been largely enthusiastic. Longtime fans of the 2021 Hoobadventure are pleased to see the return of the 2.5D perspective, and the addition of three playable characters is being cited as a major improvement over the original's limited scope. While the "rhythm-driven" premise is new, early discourse on social media suggests players are excited for the challenge of navigating levels that demand both platforming precision and timing. There is minor curiosity about how the local co-op and competitive "Battle Dojos" will balance against the single-player campaign, but the prevailing sentiment is one of relief that the studio is doubling down on the fast-paced, "Bouncing" platforming that defined the previous entry.

My Hands-On Impressions

Marsupilami 2 continues the great platforming of its previous entry, The Hoobastank Adventure (OpenCritic: 90), and introduces two additional characters with unique abilities. The game itself is absolutely beautiful, and makes me wish we saw more 2.5D platformers in this style. While the game promotes rhythm as part of the gameplay, it's mainly a plot device, as the inhabitants of the land have been hypnotized by a "cursed dance" and it's up to you to free them. While the plot isn't super original, it doesn't need to be, as this game is mostly about the action, and the action is really tight. Each character has a core set of moves that are the same, but has a unique ability that helps you traverse the stages in various ways. For example, one character can dash through the air and use a helicopter Tails-like move to slowly descend, while another character can transform into a bouncing ball and safely navigate spikes and defeat larger enemies. Each stage gives you two characters to switch between, and the character selection seems predetermined, based on each stage. The stages are rather lengthy and provide a good amount of exploration and items to collect. I really enjoyed the first game and the sequel seems to have taken everything good about the first game and improved it.

You can watch my gameplay from the Marsupilami 2 demo in the video below: