Neon White Critic Reviews

This is a video game about flying around heaven, shooting and dashing through demons, flirting with your other neons, gathering cards that happen to double as weapons, and talking to angels that just so happen to be cats with comically large sunglasses. If any of that sounds even slightly interesting to you, you may have found your new obsession.

Neon White is a love letter to turn-of-the-decade internet weirdos. It's full of rule-of-cool anime nostalgia, ear-shredding electronic music, and dialogue ripped straight out of my group chats. It's a genuine game made for an audience rarely prioritised, but even if you don't fit the archetypical person this game was made for, you're still in for the most stylish and satisfying action-platformer I've ever experienced.

Neon White is a video game vision executed with the kind of immense creativity and skill the industry needs more of. Intensely satisfying gameplay combines with a well-executed story, engaging characters and a crisp art style. Every facet compliments another area of the title with a serene cohesion which culminates in an adrenaline pumping, high-octane blockbuster of a game. Neon White is a very strong contender for my game of the year, and if you own a Switch or PC you owe it to yourself to experience this incredible title. Failure is common in Hell, but only through trial can you reach the salvation of Neon Heaven.

Neon White’s chaotic presentation and somewhat puerile script conceals a game of taut design and striking imagination – a delicious test of skills that generously rewards commitment with exhilaration.

I’ve just rolled the credits as I write this review, and it feels like there’s a hole in me. It longs for more stages, it wants to chase that exhilaration. I’m hoping that someone goads me on Twitter tomorrow, to spur me into rushing back into the early stages. I can’t wait to get back out there with a purpose. Neon White has style. Neon White has intensity. Neon White makes me feel alive.

It gets its hooks in deep and fast, but the true fun and challenge in Neon White becomes apparent the more you play it.

The art and music are dripping with style, the mechanics are easy to learn and offer enough wiggle room to be challenging without demanding perfection, and the story is full of heart — if a bit corny at times. If this game looks even remotely interesting, don’t sleep on it.

As suggested by its tagline, ‘made by freaks for freaks’, this game might not win you over if you are not already interested in speedrunning, puzzle-shooters and/or anime-inspired visual novels but, if you even slightly happen to be, Neon White is a bona-fide cult classic with a genre combination made in heaven.

Neon White achieves everything it sets out to with remarkable success. Not only is it one of the most entertaining experiences I've played in years, but it also speaks to a highly specific audience many just don't anymore. It's for weirdos, misfits, and dorks. Neon White is one of the best games of the year, and it'd be a colossal mistake not to check it out...If you're able, we highly recommend playing on PC – particularly with a mouse.

Neon White is a tour de force, combining incredible level design, excellent storytelling, and brilliant mechanics.

Neon White nails the “one more try” mentality. With complex and fast levels, great enemy variety, and easy readability, it feels like a fantastic intro to speedrunning. My biggest gripe? I want more! Not that there isn’t enough, but I just can’t get enough of the Neons and the gripping nature of this game.

Neon White perfectly captures the sense of speed without compromising on accuracy or enjoyment. It’s a ride that’s worth playing, whether to appreciate its finely tuned level design, its enjoyable narrative or that sense of accomplishment when you best a run on the first try.

Neon White is a stylish, unique title that’s sure to see a dedicated community of speed runners and action game fans alike flock to it. It’s like nothing I’ve played before, and I can’t stop thinking about its lucid but responsive gameplay even after playing for hours on end.

Neon White is a combination of genres that probably shouldn’t work, yet I had a fantastic time playing. Each stage tests your platforming skills, and new cards keep traversal fresh. The speed and level design are impeccable, but I couldn’t help but feel burnt out after multiple replays in some areas. Regardless, the character writing grounds you in this unique space and urges you to complete every optional mission to unlock everything this game offers.

Neon White is as addictive as it is challenging, with plenty of replayability and varied gameplay, looking gorgeous at every step. It's a magnificent take on the FPS-genre, building complex and thrilling levels where simply pulling the trigger isn't enough.

Neon White is a fun, immediate but challenging game with perfect design. The plot is enjoyable and dances between comic and dramatic, always proving interesting.

Neon White is an absolute delight of a speed-running game. It's easy to pick up and play, and it has enough bite that you need to master how to shave off a few seconds from your time to proceed. More importantly, it feels really good to do so. The plot is fun, if not groundbreaking, and the likeable characters keep you invested. Aside from some backtracking that I wasn't fond of, Neon White hits all the marks and hits them well. Just be prepared to start playing and discover that eight hours have flown by.

Neon White, behind the sexy suitors and anime villains, underneath the storyline and relationship building, is a game about speedrunning. It’s about learning and replaying, and it’s about beating your friends. It’s a modern iteration of a classic, simple premise, but without perfect execution, a simple premise can easily flop. Thankfully, Neon White delivers nearly flawlessly. Just make sure to take your time with this whirlwind ride, you’ll thank me for it.

Although Neon White goes by in a blur, that fast pace is only made greater with excellent level design, fun characterisation, and so many little secrets to find. Though I was expecting to be entertained by Neon White's gameplay for a few hours, its likeable cast and surprisingly sincere geekiness has managed to stay in my mind long after the credits have rolled. It's hard to really grasp its long-term staying power but Neon White has secured its place on many lists for the end of the year.

Neon White isn’t just a contender for the title of year’s best action game, but also a fascinating blend of genres, all mixed together to create a truly unique delight. The stellar level design, swift platforming and gunplay, and the terrific challenge in figuring out the optimal demon extermination route work together in harmony to make it a true heavenly delight, all set to a soundtrack that won’t be leaving the heads of players anytime soon. Neon White isn’t just a speedrunner’s delight, but a delight for any gamer in general, and it would be foolish to pass up something so sublime.