Aero the Acro-Bat Returns for a Modern Audience

It seems like we’re in the age of weird, oft-forgotten platforming mascots making a return. We say that because today, Ratalaika Games announced that “the bat is back!” No, not that bat — Aero the Acro-Bat. The circus performer will be making his grand return on Switch (and all other consoles) on 2nd August 2024.

Originally developed by Iguana Entertainment (later Acclaim Studios Austin) and released on the SNES and Sega Genesis / Mega Drive in 1993, Aero the Acro-Bat stars the titular bat on an adventure to rescue his girlfriend Ariel. Edgar Ektor is trying to ruin the circus — and all amusements as we know it — and our acrobatic bat has to put a stop to his misdeeds. The game also came to GBA in 2002.

Acrobatic Adventures Await

This isn’t your typical platformer, given that Aero is an acrobat. To complete each stage, you need to complete a number of actions and objectives to reveal the warp goal and move onto the next level. There are four unique areas with five stages in each, and if you gain enough points in a level, you’ll unlock a bonus stage which sees Aero diving into a pool. The bonus stage was different depending on what version of the game you played — the Genesis version is a vertical stage, whereas the SNES version utilises Mode-7.

This being a modern rerelease, there are a few little extras to help make the experience smoother for newcomers. Rewind, turbo, save states, and a cheat menu (to give yourself infinite health or lives, etc.) are all in as-standard, and there are screen filters and a gallery for you Aero fans out there. Your patience paid off!

Nostalgia Meets Modernity

This definitely wasn’t on our bingo cards to get a rerelease, but we’re all for it! Even if we’re not the biggest fans of Aero the Acro-Bat, we certainly respect it. The game got ported to the Wii Virtual Console back in the day, and we gave the game a respectable 6/10: