REVIEW – Big Helmet Heroes

If you’re old enough, like me, you remember the times spent playing co-op games with
your friends in their parents’ living room, den, etc. I can still remember our gaming
sessions going long into the night while we ate pizza, drank 2 liters of soda, and
competitively battled each other in Goldeneye, Time Splitters, Turok, and other games
of that ilk. But alas, time moves on. As the years have gone by, the way in which we
play has evolved. People grow up, move out of their parents’ houses, and move away,
but the desire to play together remained. To fill that couch co-op void, people turned to
online gaming, and from my perspective, it seems to be the way many people prefer to
play games with each other, from the comfort of their own home, able to play with
people across the globe. However, I am not in that majority, and I enjoy single player
games and good couch co-ops when they can be found. Sure, there have been some
good couch co-ops released over the years, and some that weren’t so good. For those
of us who crave a satisfying co-op in 2025, I have good news for you, and it comes in
three words. BIG. Helmet. Heroes.

Big Helmet Heroes is a 3D, beat ‘em up action game developed by Exalted Studios.
You or you and a friend play as 1 of 2 BIG helmeted heroes as you fight your way
through hordes of goblins and other dastardly villains over the course of 20 levels, as
you attempt to rescue the princess.

I couldn’t help but grin with childlike glee as I booted up the game and watched the
intro. It was funny, goofy, and above all, entertaining. This feeling stayed with me as I
went through the tutorial and subsequent levels. The titular heroes are cute and
cartoony and indeed sport some big helmets. Even the enemies have a cute and
childlike appeal to them, even as they try to smash, swat, blow you up, etc. The
aesthetics remind me of when I would play with action figures as a kid, just taking all
these toys and pretending they were battling. Speaking of battling, when you land a
certain amount of successful attacks (combo), I believe around 15 hits, a group of big
knights pop up from the bottom of the screen and cheer you on. It’s such a neat extra
effect, but it makes me smile every time. It reminds me of when I would play Mortal
Kombat on my Super Nintendo and there would be that guy that would pop out from the
side and shout “Toasty!”. The graphics and art style are a visual treat for your eyes.
The soundtrack and sound effects are upbeat, fun to listen to, and add to the overall
ambience, making for a more immersive experience.

Alright, so let’s move onto gameplay. You fight across several stages of varying design,
engaging in simple combat with enemies of varying design, all on your way to rescue
the princess. There are 3 forms of attack – melee, ranged, and special – plus the option
to do a dodge roll to avoid attacks. Your primary form of attack is melee and is a simple
one button attack which you can spam, and after a few repeated attacks, your melee
weapon will launch away from you for a short, brief ranged attack. Next up are ranged
attacks. You will find ranged weapons scattered throughout each level hidden in destructible objects, such as hay bales, barrels, and crates. Aside from the standard
crossbow and a couple of others, most of the ranged weapons/special melee weapons
are off the wall and so much fun to use. Ah, how much fun have I had smashing
baddies with an electrified bug zapper or bludgeoning a goblin with an electric guitar. It
is quite satisfying to watch the bad guys shake and convulse after hitting them with the
fly swatter – fun times! You can freeze enemies with a freeze ray (Mr. Freeze from
Batman anyone?) or shoot poison at your targets. Clearly, I’ve been enjoying my time
playing.

Now, onto special attacks. As you defeat enemies, your special attack meter gradually
fills, and occasionally you’ll collect a power-up that refills a good chunk of your special
meter. Once that is filled, you can unleash your special attack. Each hero has a unique
special attack. One hero grows huge and stomps all over the enemies, while another
creates a sandstorm which turns the enemies into sand versions of themselves, which
you can hit, and they just fall apart. There are many more to play around with and you
will have ample opportunities to do so. You also earn gifts that float down from the sky
via crates and parachutes. The way to earn these surprising, yet welcome gifts is by
collecting flowers. These flowers are collected either by defeating enemies or (pause
for dramatic effect…) petting sheep. That’s right! You pet/interact with sheep and get
rewarded with flowers. So be sure to pet those sheep. One last point I want to mention
– explore the levels as much you can. There are small “side-missions” that are never
explained really but explore enough and you will find them. They are small challenges,
but they add a little extra to the overall experience.

Big Helmet Heroes is a fun, entertaining beat ‘em up couch co-op game that can be
played solo or with a friend. The cartoony aesthetics, on point audio and entertaining
gameplay are sure to put a smile on your face. I know it did for me, and I recommend
you check it out.

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