TY The Tasmanian Tiger Is Back, And It’s Great

They really, really don’t make games like this anymore.

Part of the reason is that, for one, the Australian vernacular doesn’t translate particularly well to the foreign market. It might have worked for Crocodile Dundee back in the 80’s, but throwing around “old coot” and talking about biting pies sounds a bit weird in 2016.

Fortunately, we have remasters. And late yesterday, one of Australia’s better games from yesteryear relaunched on Steam. The HD remaster of TY The Tasmanian Tiger was on Early Access for a few months, but it wasn’t fully released until yesterday.

It’s heartwarming as is just to see an Aussie classic get top billing on Steam, although the reception doesn’t appear to just be rooted in nostalgia. TY’s currently sitting at a staggering 99% user rating on Steam with almost 1000 reviews, which backs up the good vibes I’ve picked up already.

I recorded the first level just to give you all an indication of what you’re in for: strong accents, a turn of phrase that will probably confuse a lot of gamers these days, and boomerangs. The gameplay was actually quite smooth, although you’ll notice the odd jump or two in the recording. TY doesn’t support NVIDIA’s Shadowplay at the time of writing, so I resorted to OBS in the heat of the moment (but I haven’t had the time to optimise the settings for local recordings, only streams).

Oh and in case you want a quick rundown of what the HD remaster actually adds: support for 60fps, full controller support, Steamworks integration, widescreen support, all without tarnishing the aesthetic or spirit of the original.

Top work, Krome. It’s available for $US15 on Steam now, so go pick it up and peg a few boomerangs at the local wildlife.