During the Nintendo Direct Mini, Square Enix confirmed the release date for their recently announced 3D Platformer Balan Wonderworld, along with a new trailer (above). It’s launching March 26, 2021 on PC (Steam), Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

Balan Wonderworld is a kid-friendly 3D platformer. Players will explore the titular Wonderworld and defeat the Negati, manifestations of negative emotions. To explore each level, they’ll acquire costumes that bestow special powers. The Soaring Sheep will let players float in mid-air, while the Pumpkin Puncher grants super-powered clobbering abilities. Over 80 costumes are available to discover and equip.

The new trailer also shows the co-op gameplay. Two players can explore the world together in local co-op. Players can equip their own costumes independently, or enter Joint Play and combine the same costume power together at the same time.

Balan Wonderworld reunites the Sonic the Hedgehog team of director Yuji Naka and character designer Naoto Ohshima. Wonderworld is the first game in their newly established Balan Company, with the hopes of generating high-quality 3D platformers.

Balan Wonderworld will launch on March 26, 2021 on PC and consoles. It has not yet been rated by the ESRB.


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Eric has been writing for over nine years with bylines at Dicebreaker, Pixelkin, Polygon, PC Gamer, Tabletop Gaming magazine, and more covering movies, TV shows, video games, tabletop games, and tech. He reviews and live streams D&D adventures every week on his YouTube channel. He also makes a mean tuna quesadilla.