Penny’s Big Breakaway (NSP, XCI) ROM + v1.2.0 Update

Penny’s Big Breakaway: Embark on an electrifying journey with Penny & Yo-Yo in an inventive 3D platform! Unleash your repertoire of tricks, string together dazzling combos, and dazzle the audience in Penny’s Big Breakaway. Penny, a street artist with lofty aspirations, offers her unique take on stardom.

When Eddie the Emperor seeks new Palace Court Performers, Penny finds herself entangled in an unforgettable audition. A chance encounter with a Cosmic String transforms Penny’s Yo-Yo into a lively companion with a penchant for snacks—and chaos! Utilize Yo-Yo to aid Penny in clearing her name, outmaneuvering the Emperor’s relentless penguin army, and untangling the secrets of the Cosmic String.

Dive into the vibrant realm of Macaroon, the backdrop for this thrilling escapade! Unearth your inner luminary in this accessible yet challenging adventure. Penny’s Big Breakaway marks the inaugural release from Evening Star.

GAMEPLAY

Penny’s Big Breakaway is a 3D platformer in which players control Penny, an aspiring street performer who is paired up with Yo-Yo, a yo-yo that has been given life by a cosmic string. The main Story Mode is split up into several levels across various worlds, most of which require Penny to make it safely to the end while avoiding Emperor Eddie’s penguin guards who will try to catch her on sight.

Movement in the game focuses on speed and momentum and is largely centered around Penny’s Yo-Yo, which can be fired in any direction to attack enemies, swung on in mid-air to clear large gaps, and ridden upon to maintain speed and momentum. Players can chain these various moves together to rack up high scores. Some levels also have treat power-ups that temporarily give Yo-Yo new abilities, such as smashing through obstacles or flying through the air.

At the end of each level, players land on a podium and attempt to busk with yo-yo tricks to earn coins. Penny’s health is represented with gusto which decreases if she takes damage, falls out of a level, or is overwhelmed with penguins, with players inducing a large score penalty for losing all of their gusto.

Each main level contains three NPCs with “dilemma” side-quests and three hidden giant coins. Clearing the dilemmas increases the coins earned from busking at the end, while the giant coins unlock extra Star Globe levels. Coins earned through each level can be spent on power-ups such as protection from penguins or extra points for a perfect run, and postcards containing concept art can be unlocked by scoring high enough on each stage. Levels cleared in Story Mode can be played in Time Attack mode, which features online leaderboards.

PLOT

In the world of Macaroon, Penny notices a flyer advertising an audition for performers to partner up with Emperor Eddie at the upcoming Gala and decides to perform yo-yo tricks at the audition. On the way, Penny discovers a cosmic string, which makes her yo-yo sentient. The audition goes over well until Yo-Yo jumps at Emperor Eddie and rips his clothes off. Penny is then deemed a felon and she escapes the palace, pursued by Eddie’s army of penguins.

Penny escapes to a beach called Tideswell, where she runs into Sheila, a sailor who ended up missing her audition spot because Penny cut in line; Penny apologizes and fixes Sheila’s boat, and in return Sheila allows Penny to use her boat to travel to Zaphara.  There, Penny meets Mr. Q, who recognizes Yo-Yo’s cosmic string to have previously belonged to Emperor Eddie’s former partner, The Taboo Artist. Penny eventually meets with Taboo, who explains that she and Eddie performed together until they grew tired of each other. She suggests that Penny sneaks to the Lawberry courthouse to rip out her page in the Book of Law, which would undo her crimes. However, Penny is caught by the penguins and jailed.

In the courthouse, Penny confronts Judge Rufus. Upon realizing that Yo-Yo, not Penny, was the cause of the whole incident, the judge offers to let Penny go and perform with Emperor Eddie at the Gala, but at the cost of Yo-Yo. Penny refuses and escapes the courthouse. Penny makes it to the Gala, where she battles Emperor Eddie, with help from her former foes. Eddie soon reunites with Taboo and they perform with Penny, winning over the audience. In a post-credits scene, Penny is assigned by Judge Rufus to “one whirling wafer’s worth” of community service.