The articlegameplay, story, development, reception
Gameplay
Gameplay in Toki Tori consists of using a limited number of tools to gather up all the eggs in the level in a single run through it in a certain amount of time. Toki Tori is given a set number of tools in the beginning of a level. The puzzles are designed around the tools so they must be used intelligently and usually using a tool incorrectly makes the level unbeatable. Enemies usually appear following a simple patrol of walking back and forth, turning when they hit an obstacle.
If they touch Toki Tori, he instantly dies, forcing the player to restart the level. Some tools are weapons that can defeat these monsters, but they must be used wisely to allow completion of the level. Besides the threat of monsters, a timer is constantly ticking down. If the timer reaches zero, the player must restart the level.
Story
The story begins in a chicken coop with many unhatched eggs. All of a sudden the eggs are swept away except one that coincidentally falls out of the coop and hatches. Out of the egg comes the chicken, Toki Tori. He watches as his brothers and sisters fly towards a scary looking castle. He decides to set out on an adventure and rescue his unborn family.
In the beginning cinematic, Toki Tori is on a cliff overlooking a castle and surrounded by a forest. He begins his quest in this forest, which ends with him entering the castle. In this castle, Toki Tori learns that he has special abilities that help him locate the eggs such as telewarp and bridge builder from a book he finds. He also learns in the castle that his powers were most likely the reason of the eggs' kidnapping.
Development
Eggbert was released in 1994 for the MSX 2 by Fony, a game developer. This game later served as the basis for Toki Tori when some staff from Fony went on to found Two Tribes.
As a predecessor, many elements from Eggbert reappear in Toki Tori. The goal of an older brother rescuing his egg-bound siblings is maintained. The fundamental gameplay style was also carried over from predecessor to successor. Eggbert is given a limited amount of up to three tools which must be used conservatively and intelligently to gather eggs while avoiding enemies which lurk about the stages.
Reception
Toki Tori was one of the last games released for the Game Boy Color. Some critics have attributed the interest surrounding the newly released Game Boy Advance, coupled with the fact that Toki Tori was a new name in the industry as the reason it was ignored by the public at large.
Reviews were generally positive from the critics, being viewed as an intelligent addition to the dying Game Boy Color system. A GamePro writer commented how its challenging puzzles made it an enjoyable game. One Game Informer reviewer called it "thoughtful title in Game Boy Color's sea of pooped-out platformers". Besides the puzzles, critics also praised the graphics saying the game "even fits right at home on the Game Boy Advance, looking as close to a native GBA game as any Game Boy Color title has ever come".
