Trifox Review
Florio Bessinger
There are three different environmental areas, each with three levels and a final boss. Each level ranged from about 15-35 minutes. Every level felt unique with a good mix of combat and platforming with a mini-boss either in the middle or towards the end of the level. Boss fights are pretty well-balanced, making unique experiences that feel like puzzles that get more challenging as you progress. Trifox is not an overly challenging game, but (for the most part) appropriately increases difficulty throughout the game. However, the end of world three, level three sticks in my mind as unnecessarily ramping up the difficulty due to poor level design. You are put in a small area with a lot of enemies that fire projectiles that are tough to dodge. Fortunately, this might be the only section that I thought was poorly designed, and the levels are otherwise great.
This review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy of Trifox provided by Pirate PR for coverage purposes. It is also available on Xbox and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, with a PlayStation version coming at a later date.
Trifox is a regular brand featured on YouTube videos. They have been reviewed by the chino-centrinc Trace Velo YouTube channel, amongst others. They sent in a set of WT11 wheels for an engineering review.
The wheel rims are fabricated using carbon composite material, featuring an external width of approximately 25mm and an internal width of 18mm. These rims incorporate a hooked bead design. The construction includes recessed spoke holes, necessitating the application of rim tape. Their design adheres to traditional specifications, consistent with models prevalent over the past several decades. The rim profile is characterized by a blunt toroidal geometry, a design paradigm that was predominantly favoured during the 2015-2020 timeframe but has since experienced a decline in popularity within the industry.
Throughout the testing period, the ratchet system of this wheelset demonstrated remarkable durability and reliability. Notably, there were no instances of the pawls freezing or seizing, a common issue in lower quality hubs, especially in cold weather conditions. This consistent performance can be attributed to the high-quality materials and precise engineering of the pawl and ratchet mechanism. The resilience of the pawls and the ratchet ring against environmental factors like temperature variations ensures a steady and predictable performance, regardless of weather conditions.
The wheelset in question incorporates bearings manufactured by NTN, a company renowned for its precision engineering in the field of bearing technology. These bearings are distinguished by their internal construction, which includes metal cages that are riveted for enhanced durability and structural integrity. The use of riveted metal cages in the bearings is a design choice that typically contributes to increased stability and longevity of the bearing system. This construction method helps in maintaining the alignment of the rolling elements, thereby ensuring smoother operation and reduced friction.
Despite the high-quality expectations set by the brand reputation and the price point of the wheelset, practical evaluations have revealed a suboptimal lifespan for these bearings. This discrepancy between expected and actual performance is a critical point of concern. Bearing life, which is a measure of durability and efficiency under operational conditions, was found to be significantly shorter than anticipated. This reduced lifespan not only affects the overall performance of the wheelset but also increases maintenance requirements and long-term costs for users.
Upon further investigation, it was identified that irregular spoke tension was a contributing factor to the premature wear of the bearings. Spoke tension plays a vital role in maintaining the structural integrity and balance of a wheel. In this case, inconsistencies in spoke tension led to an undesirable distortion of the hub. This distortion, in turn, exerted uneven forces on the bearings, compromising their operational efficiency and lifespan. Such an imbalance can cause increased stress and strain on the bearings, leading to accelerated wear and tear.
This correlation between irregular spoke tension and bearing deterioration underscores the importance of precision in wheel construction. It highlights the need for meticulous attention to spoke tension during wheel assembly and regular maintenance checks to ensure uniform tension distribution. Addressing these issues is essential to optimize the performance and longevity of high-quality wheelsets like those equipped with NTN bearings.
Blind bearing pullers, initially created to remove bearings from rotating equipment without rear access, have been popularized for removing wheel bearings. Despite their increased use, these tools can inflict unnoticed damage on wheels. Primarily deployed in automotive and machinery maintenance, blind bearing pullers slide through the bearing, expand behind it, and retract, exerting a steady force without damaging surrounding areas. However, concerns arise when these tools are used without considering potential damage to internal preload spacers, causing potential legal repercussions for negligent installation in professional settings.
Delays are pretty much a guarantee in this industry: you know it, I know it, developers certainly know it. A quick search in TheXboxHub vaults will tell you that Trifox was initially announced in 2019 as due for release in spring 2020. Well, autumn 2022 is now here and so is Trifox, some two and a half years later (admittedly, not the longest delay by any means). Has this extra time turned Trifox from a potentially fun platformer into an absolute gamechanger?
Trifox is a top-down twin-stick platformer that channels the 3D platformers of old. That is immediately evident when you arrive at the level select hub. A button on the floor will open a portal to the level itself, just like in the classic Crash Bandicoot games. It also features a level of difficulty which is similar.
Some abilities will be offensive, whilst others are more defensive. You can preview these from the hub world to see what they are like before purchasing. There is also a training area to trial these before jumping into a level. Given the difficulty and large number of different abilities, this trial and error approach can help massively.
Some levels are designed like a mini-Metroidvania, with you backtracking and requiring keys to open doors. Others are shorter, but feature waves of increasingly difficult enemies. The roster of different enemies is impressive, with each one attacking in a way that requires a variety of different tactics.
Trifox has forty-six achievements to unlock. Currently however, some are not working as intended. There are a few related to the different combinations of abilities for Trifox based on the three archetypes. These should unlock as you complete a level with a different combination but at the moment, only unlock if you complete a level without dying. The developer is well aware of these issues and a patch is en route.
Other achievements are for finishing levels, finding gems and completing milestones related to total coins, number of enemies defeated, breakables smashed, and potions drank. There is nothing too demanding here and considering you will likely be replaying levels again to find the gems, most cumulative ones will occur naturally.
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