Good news if, like me, you’ve been excitedly waiting to play Penny’s Big Breakaway, the brand-new title from the team that created the excellent Sonic Mania (now working as Evening Star), because it’s out right now. The surprise drop was announced at the Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase that happened overnight and is available for Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.
Penny’s Big Breakaway puts players in the shoes of the titular Penny, an aspiring street performer who finds herself on an impromptu adventure and on the run after a chance encounter ruins her audition with the local Emperor and turns her yo-yo into a living creature (appropriately named Yo-Yo). Armed with her new friend, Penny must move through a series of worlds to escape an army of the Emperor’s penguins (heh), clear her name and get to the bottom of the mysterious Cosmic String that started this whole charade.
To do so, players will go through a series of levels with acrobatic platforming skills powered by a diverse move set involving Penny’s sentient yo-yo, with challenges designed to get the pair moving and swinging at breakneck speed and with utter precision.
“Great platformers are iconic in our industry, and we think Penny’s Big Breakaway stands out as a truly unique and incredibly fun entry in such a beloved genre,” said Christian Whitehead, Creative Director at Evening Star in an accompanying press release. “We have been thrilled with the fan response of Penny’s Big Breakaway so far and can’t wait to see the leaderboards light up as players get into the game.”
I recently got my hands on an early preview build of the game and praised its fluid controls, huge early SEGA 3D platformer vibes and massive potential for some incredible speedrunning and skilled play from the community. You can read that right here.
Check out the release announcement trailer for Penny’s big Breakaway below:
