Travel On, Pigeon! Preview

Steam Next Fest was on, so naturally, when I was going through the demos, I saw one featuring my favourite bird: the noble pigeon. Having seen the trailer for Travel On, Pigeon! during Summer Games Fest, I knew I had to try it out. After all, it’s basically a rhythm platformer, but you play as a pigeon!

Going into the demo, I saw that I had eight levels available for me to play, so, I got straight to work. Each level gets progressively more challenging, and the real challenge is ensuring you keep to the metronome in the background. If you don’t tap the arrow keys or the WASD keys to the rhythm, you won’t be able to move, which becomes more of a challenge later.

Once you start moving, you’ll notice that there’s some funky music to get you to the beat. Personally, I’m a huge fan of the funky soundtrack. It’s relaxing, and even when you can’t move, you can always recalibrate your controls so you know that you’re still on the right beat. This certainly made it a lot easier for me, because I went out of time so much. I admit, I was a little ashamed of this, all those years of guitar playing in my teens and I still can’t stick to a beat.

As you go through the levels, you’ll notice a few more obstacles in your way. There are crossings that you’ll need to interact with to open little barriers and to get to them, you’ll often have to pass some people who will walk over you. So, you’ll need to carefully time when you’re moving, and definitely make sure you don’t lose track, or else the poor pigeon will get knocked over!

But don’t worry, you can get more lives by getting souvenirs. There are two or three souvenirs in each level, and if you lose one, you can go back and get it back. If you complete the level with your souvenirs, you’ll get to include them in your souvenir wall. However, there’s another benefit: these trinkets will also give you an extra life. More lives mean that if you are trampled over by a person, or accidentally hit with a pizza box, then you can just get up and try again.

It’s important to note that you don’t have to go back to the beginning each time you fail because you’ll be fine if you reach a white flag. The white flags are checkpoints, and depending on the level, you’ll find a few of them. Some levels, especially the later ones, are longer than others, so you can always check what to expect by holding the C key and using the arrows or WASD keys to take a look around you.

With that, you can reach the end of the level, but be warned. There are some steps that will either speed you (and any people) up, so you’ll need to keep an eye out for any purple platforms with a lightning bolt, or others that will only allow you to go in one direction. But, overall, I thought it offered a fun challenge, so I definitely can’t complain!

Overall, I really enjoyed the Travel On, Pigeon! demo. I’ll always love any game with a pigeon in them, and it really felt like I was just a regular bird in the city. The souvenirs are a nice touch, as you can take a look at your bird as you strut your stuff, and it wasn’t so challenging that I wanted to quit. Personally, I can’t wait to see what other levels they’ll come up with in the full release, so if you like rhythm games and platformers, then this might be one you want to add to your wishlist!