Well, this was somewhat inevitable given that this games spiritual predecessor, Crystal Caves, got the HD treatment a few years back. [EDIT: Apogee inform me it was only 8 months ago - 2021 has apparently just felt like years] Of the two games, I rate Secret Agent as the superior experience, with a generally better design and feel. This carries over into the HD remakes, as they are very faithful. For those unfamiliar with the game, its a 2d platformer but more akin to an overgrown single-screen platformer rather than a scrolling one, with a lot of focus on collecting items, exploring the level and completing objectives rather than a simple left-to-right run. It's highly enjoyable, if a little repetitive, but hey, what game isn't eventually?

For this remake, the smoothness of everything took me a minute to get used to but its a good look for the game, basically playing like a VGA version. There is a new episode keeping in feel with the originals but introducing some new graphics, enemies and ideas. The game gives you selectable difficulties which I always think is a good idea, allowing more gamers to find it accessible. The best thing about this game and what gives me great hope for future remakes is that Apogee have clearly listened to the most common criticism of Crystal Caves HD and added music that is appropriate this time, creating an AdLib-style soundtrack that would have realistically featured in a VGA version of Secret Agent rather than the chip-tune C64/NES style soundtrack that CCHD got - which was nice, but always felt kind of out of place.

A great effort, showing huge potential for these updated versions of Apogee classics. Big reccommendation from me.