What you're playing
Nikoderiko: The Magical World — Director's Cut is a 3D platformer with mostly 2.5D levels, plus some classic 3D segments. You run, jump and ride through eight colorful worlds as Niko and Luna, two treasure-hunting mongooses, after Baron Grimbald and his Cobring army take over a magical island. Levels are packed with platforming challenges, minecart rides, underwater sections, secret collectibles, and super-sized boss fights. The soundtrack is by David Wise, and the game has full voice acting in French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese and Mandarin Chinese.
Playing it with friends
Couch co-op lets you play through the whole thing with a friend on the same screen, which is the straightforward way to tackle it together. Steam also lists Remote Play Together, so one person owns the game and others can join from a distance. Progress and collections are shared as you go through the levels, so coordinating who goes for which secret collectible pays off.
What to pick before you start
You choose between Easy Mode, Normal Mode, and Hard Mode, plus challenge modifiers that change how levels play — mirrored levels, a crosshair chasing you, and other tricks meant to shake up experienced players. If someone in the group is new to platformers, start on Easy or Normal and turn modifiers on later. The Director's Cut adds new levels, more treasures, and the Hard Mode challenges, and progress from the original game carries over, so returning players keep what they earned. Watch out for hidden collectibles in each of the eight worlds, including Snowland, Magic Wood and Dry Sea. Animal mounts like Boaris, Todd, Oceanis and Dino are collected along the way and can be summoned for movement or combat — riding them is often the fastest way through a section.