Game Review: Marsupilami 2 – Salsa Palombia (Xbox Series X)

The sequel to 2021’s Marsupilami: Hoobadventure, Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia has arrived and with it comes even more quality 2.5D side-scrolling platforming action inspired by the likes of Donkey Kong Country, Rayman, and Sonic the Hedgehog.

I really enjoyed the first game, finding it to be a fun, vibrant, and energetic experience (read the full review here), and Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia delivers plenty more of the same. Developer Ocellus Studio has sought to refine things, rather than shake things up, and while that may not please everyone, I came away happy.

Before I get into the game detail though, I must answer the question that many will be asking. Just what is a Marsupilami? It is a comic book character created by André Franquin and first appearing in a magazine in 1952. It became a very successful multimedia franchise, with multiple animated series’, a feature film, a Sega Genesis/Mega Drive video game, and so much more. There’s even an asteroid named Marsupilami.

Published by Microïds, Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia sees the Mummy Queen and her minions return, using the power of music to control all the animals of Palombia. It’s up to the Marsupilamis to put a stop to her evil ways, rescue the animals, and save their home.

To do this, players will have traverse a series of varied levels, collected enough musical notes to unlock the world boss fight. Defeat them, then move on to the next world, until it’s time for the final showdown. With simple, yet frenetic, gameplay, delightful level designs, and finger-snapping music, it’s hard not to be enthralled by the Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia experience.

Even with so many similarities to the first game, what it offers feels fresh, thanks to the vibrancy of the visuals and the variety in sound.

There are three Marsupilami that players can control, however each level only requires two and those two are chosen automatically. This is because each Marsupilami has its own skill. For example, the yellow one can glide and use his tail to float across large gaps. The purple one can turn into a ball that can bounce off enemies and spikes, and the orange one can double jump. As you make your way through a level, hazards and rewards present themselves and it’s up to the player to switch between the Marsupilami characters (a smooth and instantaneous action) to find what works best.

In some circumstances, a certain Marsupilami must be used, especially if players are aiming to collect all the musical notes, fruit, and complete each Dojo. A returning feature that puts the players in a time-based mini game to earn musical notes. Something players must do if they want to 100% the game.

That’s not all though. Complete a level, and you’ll unlock Samba Mode. A frantic race to keep your multiplier high by collecting fruit. Each level has a Samba variation, and they are ton of fun, while also being quite challenging too.

Speaking of challenging though, Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia is not a challenging game. Levels can be long, and some do have some tricky moments later in the game, but seasoned platformer players will quickly build up a sizable supply of extra lives. However, making the game more accessible to all, Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia has an easy mode that gives the player infinite lives.

You might need the helping hand too as Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia has several difficulty spikes that prove to be problematic. All of which come via the bosses, except the final one, who is the easiest of the bunch. They are long-winded and punishing affairs that will leave many simply feeling frustrated. I was really surprised by how much trouble I had with them, especially after flying through the majority of levels.

Marsupilami 2: Salsa Palombia features genuinely excellent level design and fluid controls, but it is let down by the boss battles.

That aside, it’s still a ton of fun to play and every new level was a treat to experience. It comes with couch co-op, and I can see this being a ton of fun to play with someone equally skilled. It’s the kind of game that you just can’t help going back to, over and over again.

Capping off my positive experience, the game ran well on Xbox Series X, and I didn’t encounter any bugs or crashes. It’s not quite ‘bigger, bolder, and better’, but it gave me what I wanted, which was even more Marsupilami action.