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On February 19, 2026, indie studio Fabraz will be releasing their new 3D platformer Demon Tide on Steam. This ambitious title will throw players into an open ocean where they must discover islands, platform through unique obstacles, and transform into various forms on the fly as they help the young imp Beebz reach her evil king father Ragnar and confront him. This is one of the most ambitious indie platforming titles on the market, with its huge scope and number of gameplay mechanics. Were Fabraz able to stick the landing? Let’s pick the game apart piece by piece and make the decision for ourselves.
Perfectly Smooth Gameplay
Demon Tides is a 3D collectathon platformer, and like any game in the genre, the gameplay loop will see the player be sent to various areas as they jump around and solve tasks in order to collect golden gears as well as other items to unlock new areas and progress the game’s story.
Your protagonist, Beebz, has all the expected tools of a platforming hero. She can jump, wall jump, and even perform a few trick jumps by turning your analog stick while running or performing three jumps in quick succession. While these don’t sound too special, the extremely smooth controls of the game make jumping and moving around as her incredibly fun.
The big gameplay mechanic that sets Demon Tides apart from other games in the genre is Beebz’s ability to transform into three animals with the press of a button. These transformations are vital for traversing through the game’s stages, as each of them is equivalent to abilities in other platformers.
Beebz’ bat form functions as both a double jump and a homing attack, while her Spin form allows her to temporarily spin in the air and gain some extra distance. The player will constantly be switching between Beebz’ normal form and these in order to properly platform.
Because the transformations occur with the tap of a single button and are instantaneous, they don’t feel like a cheap gimmick but rather a very fun moveset. When combined with Beebz’s other skills, like the boost dash or side jump, they form some of the most satisfying platforming controls in recent years.
My personal favorite of Beebz’ transformations was her eel form (and not just because it’s your main method for traveling to new islands), as whenever you boost in this form on land, Beebz will roll around like a runaway tire on a highway, allowing you to traverse great distances within seconds.
Boosting before hitting a double jump and then spinning in your bat form for maximum distance can make you feel like the coolest person in the world. Accidentally getting the button order wrong and instead drilling your way into a bottomless pit will make you feel like the dumbest person in the world.
Because of the sheer amount of abilities Beebz has at her disposal and how often the game asks for the player to swap between them on the fly, I would say Demon Tides is more designed for veterans and longtime fans of the 3D Platformer genre, as someone relatively new to this kind of game can get easily overwhelmed by her moveset.
Overall, the basic controls and gameplay of Demon Tides are extremely satisfying and make traversing any of the game’s islands an absolute joy. What really sets this game apart from others like it, though, is the wonderful world you can explore.
Brilliant World Design
The world of Demon Tides takes the form of a gigantic ocean filled with unique islands to explore. At any point, the player can jump into the ocean, transform into an eel, and swim in a random direction. No matter which direction you swim in, you’re guaranteed to end up in an area that isn’t like any other in the game.
From start to finish, the game will be throwing new platforming challenges at the player. These can range from simple things like an island having mushrooms that make you bounce when you touch them to much more unique concepts like a sideways highway in the sky that you can race along with your snake form.
If there is any platforming gimmick you would like to see Beebz tackle, there is a very high chance that at least one of the game’s many islands will have it. On the flipside, if an island has a gimmick that you aren’t the biggest fan of, you can rest assured that it’ll likely be the only one to contain it.
While this wide variety of gimmicks does result in some of them feeling like they are underutilized (the low-gravity gimmick only appearing in two areas is particularly a bummer for me), it’s hard to lament that when the game is so devoted to constantly throwing new challenges at the player at every turn.
Rarely do I try to bring up other games in the same genre when reviewing a game, as saying a platformer has some shared DNA with those that defined the genre, like Mario, often goes without saying. However, I do have to voice a question about Demon Tides’ inspirations as I was hit with a twinge of unexpected nostalgia.
Based on the design of some wooden platforms that move like a pendulum and some of the Gearserker boss fights, I truly wish to know if Battle for Bikini Bottom was an influence on the developers. When playing through this game, I was frequently reminded of that beloved platformer I played as a child.
UPDATE: I actually reached out to Fabraz to ask about this, and they informed me that none of the dev team played or were inspired by Battle for Bikini Bottom. While it may seem that I have wasted your time with the last two paragraphs, I do feel my overall point of Demon Tides giving me feelings of nostalgia for platforming games I played as a child still stands, and I feel many other players will have a similar experience.
Each of these individual islands also allows the player to race through them in a time trial and share their results online. Aside from further cementing that the only way I will ever be on a speedrun leaderboard is if no one else has the game yet, these time trials are an addictive way of getting you to replay your favorite parts of the game as you try to trim seconds off of your best time.
Demon Tides is a surprisingly lengthy game, not just by indie platformer standards but by AAA standards too. A complete playthrough of this game, where the player visits every island, can take nearly thirty hours.
What’s truly shocking, though, is that it doesn’t feel that long. At the end of my playthrough, I was convinced that the time in the pause menu was incorrect, as that time went by briskly, and I was still craving more at the end of my playthrough.
Now, one part of the game I do have to voice some complaints about is the sections where Beebz will need to fight several enemies to either progress or make a treasure chest appear. Sadly, neither the homing attack nor the boost tackle feels satisfying to use as the impact and aftermath feel slow and like Beebz is always in low-gravity mode.
Because of this, fighting normal enemies never truly felt satisfying in this game, but that is a minor issue in the grand scheme of things, as there aren’t many segments that feature a lot of enemies.
Plus, any complaints I have about fighting normal enemies do not apply to bosses. Both the main story bosses and the many optional Gearserker fights throughout the world are extremely fun and satisfying whenever they occur.
Each boss has patterns that are simple enough to learn within a single attempt, while simultaneously not being so easy that you feel like you aren’t even trying as you destroy them. The last two story bosses in particular felt masterful in how they were designed and are sure to have players on the edge of their seats.
Magnificent Music and Visuals
Of course, the boss fights might be elevated due to the game’s amazing soundtrack. The sound team for this game brought their A-game as nearly every track was amazing. From normal and relaxing island themes to the crazy tracks that will play during boss fights, this is a soundtrack I will be relistening to for a while.
I think the moment where the soundtrack truly stood out as outstanding for me was when the music for the game’s first major boss encounter, Jester, began to play. Seeing the music dynamically after each time the boss was hit was beautiful and something I cannot wait to see other players’ reaction to.
Although the music is always fantastic, I would be amiss not to mention several parts of the game that were oddly silent. While these all seemed to be intentional, I couldn’t help but feel the game’s third section of the map, in particular, was too silent for my tastes.
As for the game’s visuals, the dev team knocked them out of the park. Everything from the character models to the environments looks absolutely perfect. From the tropical vibes of the first third of the game to the foreboding atmosphere of islands like Dunkelwald, the game is masterful at setting an enjoyable mood.
Character’s facial expressions in particular are very well done in this game. When someone like Beebz is annoyed or disgusted by something, they really show it on their face.
The game’s impressive scope does sadly have some effects on both the visuals and performance. When traveling at sea, there is often a lot of pop-in as new island models load, and it isn’t uncommon for the game’s framerate to begin to chug as they load in.
I am generally forgiving of issues like this, especially in indie games, when a game is attempting to do something as impressive as Demon Tides is, but these issues do break the immersion and slightly lessen the experience.
When talking about the game’s visuals, one cannot forget to mention the wide range of outfits and hairstyles that the player can dress Beebz in. All of these outfits are fun, and it’s always a joy to open a treasure chest and find a new one.
While costumes and cosmetics aren’t a rarity in video games, many games in the recent era have opted out of having unlockables in favor of DLC. So I greatly appreciate that Demon Tides has no interest in nickel and diming the player like that. Combine that with how this is one of the few games in existence that lets you dress up a little girl protagonist however you want, like a doll, and you’ve got one of the best costume systems in platforming history.
Of course, this costume system wouldn’t have mattered at all if the protagonist you were dressing up wasn’t likable. Thankfully, Demon Tides’ story and narrative were streets ahead of my expectations.
Beebz is one of the best platformer protagonists to hit the scene in recent years. Her bratty attitude and how she always has a comeback or insult to those that annoy her, combined with her heart of gold, which she is embarrassed to let shine through.
The overall plot and character interactions in this title surprised me. This game is great at juggling a simultaneously comedic and serious tone when it wants to. Seeing the bond Beebz has with her friends, contrasted with the strife between the members of her family, was a highlight of the adventure and should be praised.
Closing Thoughts
If you are a fan of 3D platformers, then you absolutely need to check out Demon Tides. This is one of the best indie games to release in a long time, and I absolutely loved it from start to finish. With a low price tag of $25, it is more than worth its price. Get this game now and hit the seas with Beebz and her crew of friends.
Demon Tides
Bottom Line
Demon Tides is one of the best 3D platformers to hit the scene in recent years. With perfect gameplay, a satisfying to explore world, and a soundtrack that you will be humming for days. This is a game that will keep you wanting more even after its densely packed thirty hour runtime.
