You play as a nameless skeleton-like character who’s a bouncer at a bar. NecroBouncer is a hack-and-slash fighting title where you need to clear room after room and defeat the boss at the end. There are four bosses total, each having unique patterns of attack. The premise of these fights is to dodge until the boss becomes vulnerable and then spam your attacks. The first two bosses become vulnerable on their own, but the final two bosses have a bit of a puzzle to them. It took me a long time on the third boss to figure out what I needed to do to get him to use a different attack that would tire him out. Overall, though, the bosses weren’t too difficult; not until you figured out how to play, that is.

Being a hack-and-slash style, NecroBouncer has fairly simple controls. You spam Y to attack with your weapon but you can also use special attacks with A and X. These specials use magic, but the game is generous at making sure you never run out. This was a good thing for me because I had far too much fun spawning zombie minions to attack enemies for me. You can press B to roll dodge, which allows you to be invincible for a moment. The controls were fluid and smooth throughout my gameplay experience, which was great since this title is fast-paced.

Yet, there’s still a lot of downtime. The way NecroBouncer works is that you go from one room to another, clearing enemies and solving puzzles. There are four floors total, each having their own unique map every time you begin a playthrough. So, no two playthroughs will ever be alike.

The rooms are laid out like a mind map beginning from the left and moving to the right. You can choose between one of four rooms to start in and then you follow that branch throughout. Sometimes, rooms will branch into two or three others and you can decide. Each room has its own gimmick, and you’ll know what it is ahead of time.

What do I mean by gimmick? Each room, in addition to a horde of enemies, often has a puzzle. For example, there’s a crystal room where you need to break all the crystals. Every few seconds, enemies will spawn from the crystals. Once they’re all broken and no more enemies can spawn, then the room is cleared. There’s another room called King of the Hill where you have to stand on a platform in the middle of the room for a certain amount of time. The thing is, enemies spawn whenever you’re on the platform. Some rooms, on the other hand, are “bouncer” rooms where it’s simply a rush of enemies you have to defeat.

So, I often mapped out the course I’d want to take before choosing the first area so I’d get the most out of it between preferred room styles and rooms that allowed the most rewards. Some rooms give you a treasure chest upon clearing them. The treasure chest contains relics (which are basically power-ups). You’ll have these relics for the rest of the run. The more you play, the more relics you’ll unlock so you can begin a run with some relics, too.

Some of these relics allow you to have more health, do more damage to enemies, spawn more zombie minions, and more. There are a lot of relics. Once you defeat a boss, you’ll have the chance to buy something at the bar. The bar will have relics available, including health. Depending on how much money you have, you can take whatever you want before moving onto the next set of rooms.

NecroBouncer is one of those games where you see how far you can go. With only four bosses, though, and the more powered-up you become, each playthrough gets easier and quicker. The first time I cleared all four bosses, I did so within an hour and a half.

The game also offers stats and extra missions to work toward. For example, defeating each boss without taking any damage. You don’t get anything for these, but it’s nice to have something else to do since the game, despite no two playthroughs being alike, can get repetitive.

I enjoyed my time with NecroBouncer and I’m sure I’ll go back and play it again. However, even though it ran smoothly most of the time, the game did glitch a few times. I once cleared a boss and the reward options froze. The chests were closed, but the outline of the rewards were there. So, I think the game thought the chests were open but I couldn’t select anything. I needed to close the game completely, losing all my progress for that run. I know the nature of the game is to see how far you get in one go, but a quick-save feature would have been nice for those glitch moments. Despite how short a run can be, I did need to abandon a run because I had somewhere to be and couldn’t complete it on time. A quick save would have been really nice at that moment.

Regardless, if you’re looking for a game that’s on the shorter side and a fun roguelite experience, NecroBouncer is a great choice. You may not play it for hours on end, but it’s good to go back to once in a while as a pick-up-and-go type of game.

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I typically begin a review by explaining the story. However, given that Pine Hearts is narrative-based, most of what I could say would be spoilers. As the game description says, “It tells a story of the loss of a family member with tenderness and care.” It takes you on an emotional ride with quirky characters and cozy aesthetics. The main goal is to get up the mountain, but the park ranger won’t let you through until you’re well prepared. Thus, your adventure begins.

As you play through Pine Hearts, you’ll piece the story together yourself by rediscovering memories. Tyke has been here before, he just needs some help reminiscing. To unlock these memories, you’ll find tear drops across the open world map. You’ll need a total of 1,300 drops to unlock all five memories. Needless to say, it’s a short adventure. I got through the game within a handful of hours, but it was worth every moment.

But how do you get the tear drops? That’s where the gameplay comes in. First, tear drops are scattered about generously. All you need to do is explore the world and you’ll find them waiting for you. You’ll also earn drops by completing quests for NPCs. Some of these quests will get you exploring the world and simply give you 50-100 tears. Other quests will allow you to further explore the world by getting the tools you need.

For example, you’ll need a hammer and a shovel, just to name a couple. You’ll find the shovel as part of a quest and get to keep it, which will help you with other quests down the road. Despite its cozy vibes, Pine Hearts will keep the quests coming, so there’s never a dull moment. Sometimes, you’ll have multiple quests at once, especially if you talk to everyone you pass.

The world is open with a handful of major areas to explore, each with subareas. You’ll explore a couple of caves, beaches, and even a castle. There are no levels, game modes, timers, or the like; you can go through the game at your own pace. Some quests will involve a mini-game (such as lawn mowing) or a puzzle (such as connecting gears together to trigger a gate mechanism), but none of it is too difficult or head-scratching. 

The controls are simple, too. To break a rock or leap over a cliff, you simply press A. Sometimes, you’ll need to move the L-stick in a certain direction. The default option is to use timed button presses, but I turned that off. It was fine and worked well, but I preferred to play through the game as simply as possible.

Once you have enough tears, you’ll unlock a memory and get to watch it. You’ll have some control over Tyke during these short sequences, but there’s minimal gameplay. Again, I won’t go into detail because of spoilers. However, unlocking these memories will also remind Tyke of a skill he used to have, such as leaping over chasms or creating bridges by pushing a tree over. These skills will allow access to other parts of the map and create shortcuts.

By the time I had unlocked the final skill, I still needed about 75 more tears to get the final memory, thus gaining access to the mountain. I was able to backtrack through the map and go through the areas again without the pressure of quests. I could take in the scenery while keeping an eye out for places I missed or couldn’t access before.

When the final memory was unlocked, I had access to go up the mountain. I cried. A lot. I think Tyke kept it together better than I did. I won’t say much else; you’ll have to experience this game for yourself.

The only downside to Pine Hearts was that there were a few glitches. At one point, Tyke got stuck walking in place, and the only way for me to fix it was to exit to the Switch homepage. Also (and this is more of a personal preference), I would have liked to save the game whenever I wanted. It autosaved often enough, but I would have liked more control over when and where it saved, especially since the game would freeze or lag at each autosave. Otherwise, my entire experience was smooth and relaxing, with lullaby-like music playing in the background.

Overall, Pine Hearts is a short and (bitter)sweet title. If you’re looking for a new cozy adventure that tells an amazing story in a sensitive manner, then certainly give this one a go. You won’t be disappointed. (And yes, you can pet the dog!)

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Rainbow Cotton harkens back to the early ’90s-2000s era with great, fun anime-based cinematics and characters with silly stories to propel the player into the wacky world of fantasy and fun. You are Heroine Cotton, and to cut the narrative right out and give you facts, you’re out to defeat the bad guys for magical candy; yep, magical candy…very deep.

The game has reversed controls. Like flying a plane, up is down, and down is up. These controls can be a tad daunting to get accustomed to the mechanics, but after a short bit, I was flying with the not-so-best of them…okay, I was bad. But (in truth) it didn’t take long to get a feel for so short a learning curve. Once I had the hang of it, I was having a blast. 

The art direction in Rainbow Cotton is very late 90’s anime with big, colorful enemies that definitely will make you laugh. This entry is, I believe, the first Cotton game in 3D. My only personal gripe is that when Cotton is in the middle of the screen, she blocks the player’s view of the enemy, allowing some cheap shots. That doesn’t make it poor; it honestly just increases the challenge. When it comes to the soundtrack, though, I wasn’t very impressed. Nothing stood out as exceptional. It didn’t ruin the experience, but I also feel it really didn’t draw you in. 

Challenge-wise, it ramps up pretty quickly. The first level sets you up to get a feel for the gameplay; not very challenging. The second stage starts to warn that it’s about to go down. By the third, everything and everyone is trying to blast your broom-riding butt out of the air. I never made it past the fourth, mainly due to the shooting, aka button mashing, tired my paws out. Then I figured out I could just hold the button down. DOH!

Rainbow Cotton is a lot of fun. It’s one of those games you can grab quickly and not have to drop hours on. The cutscenes between levels will make the kids giggle at the antics of Cotton and her friend as they journey to get candy. There is nothing truly off with this game; it’s cute with easy-to-pick-up, tough-to-master, fun gameplay. Worth every penny.

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Describing Rose and Camellia Collection as ‘five games in one’ is an enormous stretch. The entire Collection consists of four ‘Scenarios’ plus a bonus crossover with an even more obscure game which you have to enable in the settings to play. 

Each Scenario offers a brief scene-setting narrative, followed by a series of slap battles, culminating in a more challenging boss fight that ultimately doesn’t deviate from the established pattern. There is a local co-op mode, but it also offers very little variety. You can get through the entire game in less than two hours.

The key feature of Rose and Camellia Collection is the slapping mechanic. The turn-based combat sees two characters delivering open-hand slaps to the other’s face until their health is reduced to zero. You jerk your Joy-Con backwards to dodge and swing it to slap. You can feint to trick your opponent into dodging prematurely and ultimately deliver a stronger blow. If an opponent misses, you can counterattack on their turn. 

Occasionally, you can perform a special move to deliver multiple slaps at once, but there’s no clear indication of what triggers this. A couple of characters learn unique attacks, but this happens very late in their stories and you can win easily without ever utilising them. A score in the top corner ticks over as you fight. It has no impact on the game, but it is satisfying to see the number rise. 

Alternatively, you can carry out these moves by swiping on the touchscreen in handheld mode. However, this robs the game of what little novelty it has as there is very little else to the gameplay. Rose and Camellia Collection gets repetitive quickly, making its short run time something of a blessing in disguise.

The plot ostensibly centres on an aristocratic Japanese family. The first two Scenarios see noble women catfighting over the inheritance of their family home. The third sees a teenage maid travel the world battling globally inspired enemies in training to defend the household she will serve. The final canon story sees those women defend their home from hostile noble families from the fractured land.

The atmosphere is excellently generated through its art, with elegant characters over sinister backgrounds. The injuries you deal to your enemies during fights are graphic in a way that is gory yet satisfying. The voice acting in the cutscenes is genuinely fantastic, complemented by an incredible soundtrack that evokes the Victorian Gothic style perfectly.

There is plenty of interesting material here that could have resulted in an epic storyline of familial politics and betrayal. Unfortunately, you don’t spend enough time with any of the characters to connect to them. The cutscenes are short and follow very familiar story beats. Supernatural elements are introduced and offer some intrigue, but they’re never explained or explored.

Some of the writing is genuinely good. It is overall darkly funny. However, these moments are few and far between in an already short and under-developed tale. More often than not, the dialogue makes sweeping, uncomfortable generalisations about women that could have been easily left out.

Rather than a complete game, Rose and Camellia Collection feels like a demo of something much larger and better. There is so much potential for a sprawling exploration of the fractured story world with its class politics and sinister demonic entities. The option to choose the dialogue for your character would give you so much more agency as a player, making you feel more invested in the slaps you throw. A more expansive story would also give your poor arm a rest, as it is very easy to click quickly through every cutscene and just slap for an hour straight.

Rose and Camellia Collection is evidently a game that is not designed to be taken seriously. It is purposefully ridiculous, and at times darkly funny. However, the quality of its writing is inconsistent, and it leans far too much on one gimmick to justify its $20 price tag.

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I don’t believe I need to explain what Pac-Man is all about. In terms of gameplay, PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs doesn’t do anything exciting to rejuvenate the mechanics of this classic arcade game. You still play as Pac-Man, munching your way through a maze avoiding (and sometimes eating) ghosts. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?

However, now you’re competing against 63 other players. Yes, this game is taking notes from titles such as Tetris 99 and pits 64 Pac-Man players against one another. The last one standing wins. In theory, this is a great idea, but it didn’t execute well for me.

Upon turning on the game, you’ll play through two levels of Pac-Man to teach you the basics. It’s quick, so even if you’re well-versed in Pac-Man, you won’t roll your eyes too much. The second level explains that you’ll be able to get power-ups, such as a shield or ghost repellent. Other players will be able to go in and out of your maze, just as you’ll be able to explore their maze.

By going into other mazes, you’ll be able to eat their dots, power pellets, and fruits, steal their powers-ups, and also eat the ghosts and the other players (provided you have a power pellet). You have three lives, so if you get eaten by another player or get caught by a ghost, you’ll respawn back in the maze you died in.

Each round also has two missions. For example, one mission may be to eat 10 dots in someone else’s maze, eat two other players, go into three other mazes, etc. The missions are random for each game, so you won’t know what to work toward until you’re in the game. Even then, the missions don’t appear right away and they each have a certain amount of time to complete. It was hard to tell, but it seemed like the missions ranged from 30 seconds to a minute or so.

Completing a mission earns you more points. If you don’t complete a mission, you get zero points. There are no huge stakes or incentives to complete one or both missions within a game. In fact, I gave up on certain missions. If the game wanted me to eat 10 dots in someone else’s maze, sure. However, there was a mission to eat three ghosts in someone else’s maze. After completing that a few times and it not registering in-game, resulting in me “failing” the mission, I didn’t bother to work toward it whenever it popped up. The same thing happened a few times when I was supposed to eat two other players.

I think these missions were put in place to get players to explore more. There were many games where I stayed within my own maze and still managed to win first place because I’d let the other players duke it out amongst themselves or they’d get eaten by ghosts. I mostly lost games because I was clumsy and got eaten by my own ghosts.

Each game consists of four rounds or two minutes each. So, each game is short and sweet. It was often much less than that because players would drop like flies (either dropping out of the game or dying quickly). Then, it would take roughly a minute for the game to match me to a server. I was doing chores in between games because there was so much waiting. 

And there you have it: the two modes, elimination and ranking. I know I only explained one way of playing, but that’s because both modes are exactly the same. The only difference between the two is that the ranking mode will save your score and add it to a local and global leaderboard. That’s locked until you reach level 10. You’ll earn experience points for every game you play (depending on the missions you complete, how long you lasted, etc.). I had played about two hours of games in the elimination mode to reach level 10 just to unlock the exact same mode.

You’ll also earn coins when playing, which allows you to dress up your Pac-Man and buy different designs for your maze. It’s nothing too special, but I enjoy that type of aesthetic. My Pac-Man dressed as a bee was adorable.

Despite playing online with 63 other players, PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs is lonely and slow. You can play with friends but only if they have a copy of the game. I understand why; split-screen for this type of gameplay would be rough to follow, but the asking price (at the time of writing this review) is $19.99. For five minutes of fun at a time, lots of waiting in between games, and only one mode disguised as two, I personally feel like that asking price is a bit much.

I had fun with PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs when I first started playing. However, the longer I played, the more bored I got. It’s so slow-paced at times and the lack of content grew dull. Pac-Man itself is a fun game, so I may go back to this title from time to time, but it certainly won’t be a go-to of mine.

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The game starts compellingly, with you taking control of a middle-aged to older character (from a minuscule selection). That’s not something I recall too many games doing (though the grief angle certainly rings a bell), and it makes Moonglow Bay stand out somewhat. So does the Eastern Canadian coastline setting, presented in voxel form, no less. With a unique character and setting, Moonglow Bay seems set to deliver a cozy fishing adventure RPG.

Sadly, once the opening narrative and tutorials conclude, you’re left with an element of aimlessness. Do you want to talk to the residents of the town? You’re encouraged to, though many (perhaps most) have little to say, at least initially, and aren’t very interesting beyond dropping tidbits about fish. Do you want to visit the various buildings? I’m shocked that such a big town has so little to enter; a real kick in the pants after slowly making your way to a spot on the map. Seriously, I get we’re playing an older character, but this sluggish walking speed soon grows weary. However, this might be a random glitch because it doesn’t always happen. In any case, the entire game starts a little too sluggish for my liking. At the point where it should be hooking you, you may find yourself turned off before getting to the better elements, like getting a boat and battling bosses.

Of course, you’re not just catching fish, but also cooking them, because what would a “slice-of-life” game be without that? We found the timing tricky, although both the burnt and undercooked meals still looked great. Perhaps this element was, may I suggest, undercooked? If real-life bankrupt towns depended on my cooking for survival, we’d be in trouble.

The voxel graphics are an acquired taste. Even as someone who enjoys these, they seem slightly out of place here. Meanwhile, my wife very much disliked them, which killed the potential for co-op play in the Gould household. The presentation can lead to getting stuck (again, the lead character isn’t agile), bugs or not. Thankfully, an in-game option lets you spawn at a safe point.

Something that should not be an acquired taste is the soundtrack. Lena Raine (Celeste) came through with compositions that kept me playing longer than I might otherwise. My tip is to lower the sound effects and dialogue in the options while cranking the music.

For all its original elements, Moonglow Bay surprisingly ends up taking popular elements from other games and not improving them. Now, if you’re looking for another game with a plot shaped by grief and haven’t had your fill of fishing, cooking, selling/donating, taking pictures, etc., this is for you. For me, it wasn’t what I expected. It might’ve worked three years ago when initially released on PC. But as a 2024 release on Switch, it’s too cliched and stagnant for me to give a broad recommendation.

Moonglow Bay failed to hook me, but as the debut game from a small studio, it’s a solid enough start overall for the subset of gamers who haven’t yet had their fill of titles like this. I hope the team can tighten their focus and gameplay mechanics for their next release.

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You play the role of a deep-sea diver who catalogs the environment by scanning each and every creature dwelling below the surface. This simple premise creates the perfect form of escape. There’s no life meter or timer to worry about; in fact, there’s nothing stressful at all. Even your air tank never runs out of oxygen. If you want a chilled experience to help unwind after a long day, there’s nothing quite like sitting back and enjoying a dip into the world of Endless Ocean Luminous.

There are four modes to enjoy. When you first dive in, you’ll automatically begin in Story mode, with Chapter 1 taking you through the basics of how to play. This is a great way to start things off, gently introducing you to the mechanics of diving. Once complete, further chapters are unlocked, allowing you to choose to progress with the story or try another mode. 

The story itself involves a mysterious underwater tree that’s losing light. The premise is to collect light from sea life by scanning them during your dives. This, in turn, powers up the dying tree, bringing balance back to nature. It’s a feel-good story that’s perfectly fine; it’s just enough to motivate you, though, honestly, the scanning itself is so enjoyable that you don’t really need an overarching reason to do so. Still, the chapters are generally short and sweet enough to enjoy between dive sessions, giving you a nice story to follow if you choose. One niggle is that you eventually reach a point in the story where you can’t proceed until you’ve scanned a certain amount of creatures. While I had no qualms about returning to dives, it seems like an unnecessary blocker if you’re generally interested in the story.

This leads us to Solo Dives. As the title suggests, this is the spot for diving into the ocean on your own. You’re presented with a large area to explore, specially generated when you begin a new dive. Although some elements like caves and reefs are bound to appear each time, it keeps each dive feeling fresh. You can save and return to an existing dive, too, which is just as well; it takes a long time to thoroughly scan the entire area. 

A map in the top right shows your position in relation to the area’s boundaries. The map is blank to begin with, filling out with topographical blues as you swim through. A handy percentage indicator updates as you progress, and it’s easy to see which areas are still blank. 

The other incentive to visit new areas is that this also tends to lead to the discovery of new aquatic life. This is where Endless Ocean Luminous truly shines. There are well over 500 species to discover (578 to be precise). There’s something calming about casually swimming through crystalline waters and witnessing the amazing life that dwells within.

And everything looks fantastic. The humble Switch does a great job of presenting players with a beautiful world to explore. The water is simply teeming with life. I’m genuinely impressed by this. Not only is there a lot of data to load when you dive (with thankfully short load times), but the fish look so real. I constantly felt like I was swimming through a National Geographic documentary.

Cataloging creatures is super satisfying. It’s a two-step process. Firstly, you scan an area with a quick tap (or hold) of the L button. Holding allows you to scan multiple fish at once, cutting down on any tedium that might set in. Once scanned, you can optionally snap a photo since there’s an album to fill out in addition to the scan logs. This is equally fun; I love lining up the perfect shot, preferably with choral or something interesting in the background. 

The documentary aspect comes from the description of each creature. This is also optional, but once a creature is scanned, a quick tap of the A button presents a blurb of text that’s also read aloud. It’s not too long, not too short—the perfect amount of info for learning about sea life.

The next mode is Shared Dives. This is very similar to the solo mode with one key difference: this is where you go to dive with friends or random online players. I was curious about the online experience, which the trailer promised would group up to 30 online players in an expedition. The Switch isn’t known for its online prowess, but I was pleasantly surprised to find this mode works quite well. I was equally surprised at how fun it is to swim with other players. There’s an instant bond that develops when you encounter another person sharing this world with you, and you can wave and perform other antics to show your camaraderie. It would be even better if you could talk to them, but that doesn’t appear to be a feature of this version.

Another missing feature is the jukebox. The music that accompanies each dive is lovely, with ambient tunes that twinkle serenely in the background. It adds to the serene mood and helps sessions feel like short stints rather than the long stretches they turn into. It’s easy to pass time in this world. However, if you’re looking for a way to revisit the soundtrack outside of the water, you won’t find that in this title.

Endless Ocean Luminous still offers plenty to do, helping to justify its high price tag (it’s a first-party published title, after all). Apart from creature logs, photos, and shared dives, you can also salvage for sunken items. There are 340 of these to discover, which fills out another separate log. You can also purchase different suits for your diver by using coins earned by scanning. Plus, there’s a fourth mode I haven’t mentioned yet (were you keeping count?). This is Event Dives, which are special time-limited dives that present you with unique opportunities to encounter rare underwater life. It helps generate a community feel to the proceedings, again providing a sense of belonging when you share these events with other players. And who knows what you might find while you’re down there?

Overall, Endless Ocean Luminous is an extremely relaxing way to spend your time. It’s easy to lose yourself in this environment and enjoy the interesting creatures sharing your space. While it’s not necessarily for everyone, newcomers like myself should enjoy it. There’s no doubt this is a fun experience, even if some elements might not appeal to fans of previous entries. Still, I genuinely enjoyed my time in the water. And I’ll continue diving for some time to come.

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The plot is…I forget. Something about a mad scientist and his robot army? The story hits familiar notes. Dark energy, a city under attack, the world needing saving. The mix of full-screen art with animated cutscenes works to get you invested early, and exposition (with some sparse vocals) at your home base between missions suffices.

Berserk Boy is marketed as a mashup between Mega Man and Sonic. I respect the truth in advertising. I reached a point where I started noting specific instances that reminded me of parts in games from either series. Once I hit double digits, I stopped. In the end, it didn’t much matter. Both those series are among my favorites. And Berserk Boy is among the better games I’ve played in 2024.

Berserk Boy may have familiar speedy gameplay (frantic at points), but it also has the fluidity to make it work. These controls are tight, and the various moves (and changing forms) shouldn’t be too overwhelming for those familiar with games of this style. Any run-and-gunner will soon find themselves racking up combos. The marketing mentions, “you’ll be able to play for big scores,” and sure enough, high scores are a draw. I found myself replaying missions in hopes of improving. Familiar fun is still fun all the same.

That said, after the initial thrill had set in, repetition followed, and sooner than I expected. But the presentation excels, which helps lessen any monotony. Seriously, this is an impressive game to both look and listen to. It fares even better in motion than still shots can convey with animation and speed. And the boss fights offer a fun, fair challenge.

At 7 or 8 hours, Berserk Boy may overstay its welcome slightly for this type of game, although some of that depends on how much of a completionist you are. But it’s a fun game to play a mission here or there, and coming back to it, even after a gap, you shouldn’t feel lost. Also, you shouldn’t feel overwhelmed difficulty-wise, as some welcomed options can make the game more accessible for newer or less experienced players.

For fans of Mega Man, Sonic the Hedgehog, and a host of platforming classics, it’s hard not to recommend Berserk Boy. The plot may not turn heads, but the fluid controls and presentation should. Will this game make you “Go Berserk?” Perhaps. Here’s hoping for an 8-bit demake to follow.

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The gameplay is fairly simple. You travel across the map navigating obstacles in your way by pulling levers, pushing blocks and occasionally using your special ability to summon vines. For the most part, the puzzles aren’t particularly difficult to solve, as the game focuses more on the world.

One Last Breath’s strong suit is the atmosphere. The environments take the form of a somewhat familiar post-apocalyptic planet bathed in a sometimes irritating amount of darkness, but are well generally constructed. The occasional scene that shines a light on the harrowing state of the world and the horrible monsters inhabiting now are brilliantly creepy.

This is complemented by an awesome soundtrack and very satisfyingly chilling sound effects. This is further compounded by the way the Joy-con throb in your hand along with the character’s heartbeat in moments of tension. Some of these little details that have been implemented are really fantastic.

The issues you’re more likely to face are due to slightly clunky mechanics. The controls aren’t particularly precise and it’s not always clear if you’re standing slightly too far away from something you’re supposed to be able to interact with. The set speed at which you travel is also somewhat frustrating. There are points where you need to jump onto something, or flee from or sneak past a monster, and those moments fall flat due to not having control over your speed.

This seems as if the main pain points could be down to the 2.5D structure, which is an ambitious approach that is difficult to pull off. Occasionally, a puzzle will require depth perception, but not frequently enough that you get into a habit of factoring the background into your approach.

It would be nice to see more of the vine mechanic, as the idea of it ties nicely into the premise of the game. This ability can only be used in a handful of specific situations. There are a number of puzzles throughout the game that look like the vine mechanic would be useful where it isn’t the option and you can’t even try. It makes it very clear that there is only one available solution to each puzzle and little room to experiment with the one unique feature your playable character has.

This mechanic could also have been an interesting vehicle to highlight more of the story. One Last Breath is silent, leaving it up to you to piece together the narrative for yourself. This is another common but difficult feat that could be better implemented in this game. There isn’t enough in the landscape or puzzles to distinguish One Last Breath from other generic, post apocalyptic sci fi and make its own plot clear. 

The environmental message and the story of hope in the face of utter destruction in One Last Breath is one that resonates. The depiction of the ruined world is great, with some attention to detail coming through beautifully. However, other details that make similar games shine fall flat in this one, and the story outlined in the game’s description doesn’t come through as clearly as it could in the actual gameplay. For a short, cheap game, there is plenty that is enjoyable, but it is overshadowed by its competition in the genre.

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I first played the game solo to get used to the controls and see what the game was all about. Upon choosing an avatar, a cutscene shows your character sitting at home watching TV. A commercial comes on about saving the world by working at the best shipping company. Your character calls the number on screen, and you’re thrown into the first level, which also acts as a tutorial. 

The gameplay for Ready, Steady, Ship! is simple. Your job is to connect conveyor belts, and ensure they’re facing the right way before placing boxes on them, leading the packages to their delivery truck. The boxes come in different colors, such as pink, blue, or green. Most of the time, the conveyor belts lead to different trucks. If you want to 100% the level, you’ll need to place the right colored boxes on the correct path to their corresponding truck.

Regarding controls, you’ll mostly use the A button to grab conveyor belts or boxes and B to throw the boxes. You can also sprint for a short time, but if you’re really in a hurry, there’s a coffee vending machine that gives you a speed boost for a longer time. I rarely used this because the physics often made things finicky.

Sure, the ragdoll-like movement is fun to watch and can be funny. However, the controls don’t always register . The A button would appear for me to pick up a box; I’d press it and walk away without the box. I had to get up close and personal with the items, press the button, and let the game figure out what I was trying to do. Oftentimes, I’d throw a box, miss the conveyor belt, and the box would get stuck in a spot I couldn’t get to. Instead of respawning after a certain amount of time, that was it. When this happens, there’s no way to 100% the level without restarting the whole thing. 

The good news is each level has three rooms. Once you complete a room, the door unlocks, and you can move on. However, there’s also an emergency exit button. So, if you get stuck in a room, you can give up and move on. Each level is timed. The clock doesn’t reset when you enter a new room. You earn stars based on how fast you beat the levels and also how many boxes you ship correctly. Earn enough stars, and you can unlock more levels.

Despite some of the glitches and slight frustration, I enjoyed my time playing solo. However, after a few levels, the game brings in forklifts. Forklifts and ragdoll physics do not mix. At least, not in Ready, Steady, Ship!

The forklift was nearly impossible to control. To accelerate or reverse, you use the L and R buttons. Instead of holding them down, you press the button once, and the forklift will continuously move until you hit the brake. It was highly frustrating to control where I was going while trying to operate the actual lift to pick up and transport crates of boxes. When I’d get as far as picking up the crate, I’d try to maneuver the forklift only for the physics to push the crate off the forklift, and I’d have to start the process over again. I almost always ran out of time and couldn’t complete the forklift levels.

So, I gave up on solo and played multiplayer with my sister. Ready, Steady, Ship! only allows up to two players locally. The levels for multiplayer are different than they are for solo, which was a nice touch. However, the game played the same. There was less chaotic fun and more frustration as the camera didn’t zoom out far when we were on opposite ends of the room.

Once again, the controls were fickle as we attempted to work through the different levels. Similar to when I played solo, we had a fun time with it while we played. However, this most likely won’t be a go-to game of ours. 

The strongest part of this title was the level design. The early levels start off normal but as you progress through the game, the rooms themselves are a puzzle. For example, one level has a pool filled with acid that you need to make your way across via metal grates moving back and forth. I had the most fun playing these types of levels, trying to figure out the design rather than shipping the boxes. And while the controls were simple, they didn’t always register, which brought me out of the game.

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