This is one of a few games which evoked similar feelings to A Short Hike or Toem, which is a welcome treat. Having 2D characters in a 3D world allows for excellent expressiveness that might be more challenging to capture on an indie budget with 3D models. Bright colors and charming characters, with some decent platforming all make this game a wholesome and relaxing playthrough. There is some repetition in the tasks as the game continues, and some jankiness pervades (especially with camera control in the hamster wheel), but this didn't strongly detract from the game's charm.
This game is okay. You play as Niko, a non-binary kid who possibly has some trouble at home because of their gender identity. The game never really specifies why Niko's mom has the unclear caring/judgmental traits towards them. Because of those problems, Niko leaves home and now needs cash, so they go on to be a professional friend for different animals in the islands of a cozy archipelago.
This is an easy platformer that plays similarly to A Hat in Time, although there is no combat and little stakes. You don't die for falling in the water, and there are no lasers or obstructions that damage you. The game is mostly about collecting stuff and doing little sidequests that play like minigames.
Although the islands are varied enough, the minigames repeat throughout the game. You mostly play the same minigames in different iterations, and each level also has some exclusive minigames.
It plays out like a less focused version of A Short Hike, comprised of 5 short hikes or so.
If you go all the way through, it isn't an experience that you'll write home about, but that's okay. It's an okay game. I didn't feel disappointed by it, I just felt that it wasn't engaging for long sessions of play. Played as intended, as an hour-long distraction to relax from having worked, it's actually a nice experience. It looks good and sounds good too.
This is an easy platformer that plays similarly to A Hat in Time, although there is no combat and little stakes. You don't die for falling in the water, and there are no lasers or obstructions that damage you. The game is mostly about collecting stuff and doing little sidequests that play like minigames.
Although the islands are varied enough, the minigames repeat throughout the game. You mostly play the same minigames in different iterations, and each level also has some exclusive minigames.
It plays out like a less focused version of A Short Hike, comprised of 5 short hikes or so.
If you go all the way through, it isn't an experience that you'll write home about, but that's okay. It's an okay game. I didn't feel disappointed by it, I just felt that it wasn't engaging for long sessions of play. Played as intended, as an hour-long distraction to relax from having worked, it's actually a nice experience. It looks good and sounds good too.
I get that the point of this game is to be wholesome, but this game is too wholesome.
Cute little game! The collectathon gameplay may be simplistic and a bit repetitive, but it works great for a little 4 hour experience. The art style is amazing, and I love the Paper Mario-esque aesthetic with 2D characters in a 3D space.
What I was not expecting at all, was the subtle storytelling about a nonbinary youth looking for acceptance in the world. I found myself caring for Niko more and more as the game went on, as I learned more about them. I love how it was handled.
I think asking for $25 for this is a bit much, but this is absolutely worth picking up when it's on sale, it's a great cozy little time.
What I was not expecting at all, was the subtle storytelling about a nonbinary youth looking for acceptance in the world. I found myself caring for Niko more and more as the game went on, as I learned more about them. I love how it was handled.
I think asking for $25 for this is a bit much, but this is absolutely worth picking up when it's on sale, it's a great cozy little time.
both very much for me yet so overboard with the pandering-to-excessively-online-people that I quickly started to hate it.
the gameplay is fun and the world is colorful. I ABSOLUTELY NEED more games with great movement that are entirely about chatting with neat characters without any extra systems or challenges that get in the way.
my problem is how elbow-nudgingly aware the presentation felt. you make friends with furries! you collect cassette tapes! there's a Tamagotchi you can play with! the coins say "MEOW! MEOW!"! the shipping container island is filled with default cubes (us silly game developers)! one of the cute characters is actually DARK!!
I found the fox who had four screens of Discord open and closed the game.
even with the pronounced spotlight on the precious characters and pastel world, the game has moments where it gets in the way of itself being able to do so. the helper frog box that appeared in the corner stating that I seemed to be stuck when I was just exploring the island on my own terms was notable, but the more prevalent hiccup was with camera angles during dialogue. the camera during gameplay is fantastic and never gave me an awkward view, but so many times when I talked to a character did the camera flip around to some weird shot where characters were covering each other and I couldn't clearly see what I thought the game was touting as its strongest selling point.
if you love this game, I totally get it; I know there's an ever so slightly different version of myself that does too.
the gameplay is fun and the world is colorful. I ABSOLUTELY NEED more games with great movement that are entirely about chatting with neat characters without any extra systems or challenges that get in the way.
my problem is how elbow-nudgingly aware the presentation felt. you make friends with furries! you collect cassette tapes! there's a Tamagotchi you can play with! the coins say "MEOW! MEOW!"! the shipping container island is filled with default cubes (us silly game developers)! one of the cute characters is actually DARK!!
I found the fox who had four screens of Discord open and closed the game.
even with the pronounced spotlight on the precious characters and pastel world, the game has moments where it gets in the way of itself being able to do so. the helper frog box that appeared in the corner stating that I seemed to be stuck when I was just exploring the island on my own terms was notable, but the more prevalent hiccup was with camera angles during dialogue. the camera during gameplay is fantastic and never gave me an awkward view, but so many times when I talked to a character did the camera flip around to some weird shot where characters were covering each other and I couldn't clearly see what I thought the game was touting as its strongest selling point.
if you love this game, I totally get it; I know there's an ever so slightly different version of myself that does too.
i just want more
A cute, charming, low-difficulty, combat-free 3D platformer take on the A Short Hike-like subgenre. Writing sometimes seems like it's trying a bit hard to be wholesome and whimsical in an affected "UwU smol bean" register, and the last level in particular goes on a bit too long (hence why I ended up shelving it), but still a nice way to spend a few hours, even if Tinykin still holds the crown for this specific type of indie 3D platformer.
Cozy, cute and chill. It's a game filled with fun vibes despite its repetitive tasks. Its simplicity and lack of difficulty lend it to be a great recommendation to little ones or someone new to games.
Get your resume ready as I think this is a job worth applying too.
Get your resume ready as I think this is a job worth applying too.
Adorable, movements are so fun, but can only go on for so long, that said, keen to try 100%
Very cute, cozy and wholesome platformer. Very fun, just wish the stick controls weren't broken (you can only move in 8 directions, the camera is analog though)
This was a pretty cute indie game published by the people who made Hat in Time but the developers, Frog Vibes, were a fairly new team at the time!
I think they handled the game well enough and it was pretty cute. Win for the gay turtle couple in the game and how colorful in general this whole world was. The style contained a good amount of charm.
Wasn't anything that wowed me and the joke with the naked deer and the influencer didn't hit me personally, I think they weren't too bad. Regardless I think all the designs were good and some of the fun side storys were a holler of a time or got some emotions. There was also a few glitches but thats expected for a first time game.
I do wanna say this is not to side them, I very much enjoyed and loved parts of this game!
It was a fun time about developing and moving forward and I really appreciated that message! Would recommend it!
I think they handled the game well enough and it was pretty cute. Win for the gay turtle couple in the game and how colorful in general this whole world was. The style contained a good amount of charm.
Wasn't anything that wowed me and the joke with the naked deer and the influencer didn't hit me personally, I think they weren't too bad. Regardless I think all the designs were good and some of the fun side storys were a holler of a time or got some emotions. There was also a few glitches but thats expected for a first time game.
I do wanna say this is not to side them, I very much enjoyed and loved parts of this game!
It was a fun time about developing and moving forward and I really appreciated that message! Would recommend it!
not only is this game absolutely adorable but it's also a TON of fun!! i wasn't expecting to enjoy this as much as i did but it would easily be my favourite game if it were longer. the dialogue is charming, the character designs are adorable and the little tasks are very enjoyable!
my only gripe is the game is very buggy. there's several areas of the map where various parts of the level will flicker in and out of existence and the bathhouse, although the prettiest level in the game, is full of odd graphical bugs involving random flashes of lighting. i also had one moment where i was afk and left the game running in the background and when i came back, i'd somehow fallen inside of a rock with no way to get out?? that was weird lol.
my only gripe is the game is very buggy. there's several areas of the map where various parts of the level will flicker in and out of existence and the bathhouse, although the prettiest level in the game, is full of odd graphical bugs involving random flashes of lighting. i also had one moment where i was afk and left the game running in the background and when i came back, i'd somehow fallen inside of a rock with no way to get out?? that was weird lol.
a fantastic lil capitalism simulator
this is not a difficult game in the slightest, but instead just a calm and fun game to hop around in. good movement and a really cute artstyle, just a nice little game
Pretty good, a bit short and simple but the movement was fun and the dialogue was entertaining. The levels themselves were a bit too small and simple same with the music.
yes ribbit
This game is the most comfy you cant get while jumping arround and befriending and helping everyone, that''s a frog fact.
An adorable game full of memorable characters, fun gameplay, a cute story, and some neat collectibles. My only issue was some minor graphical bugs but other than that this is a game you should definitely check out!
An adorable & instantly charming low-stakes collectathon, almost an experiment in using traditional design principles and seeing if the game still works without a fear of failure or hard loss. In my opinion, it absolutely does work with maybe just a few hurdles in design that crop up now and then.
Some people may be instantly turned off by the overly "moe" aesthetic, but I think this actually hits a nice balance of not being overly cutesy in a way that rams it down your throat. Even though the audience of this game isn't really me, I found it to be a relaxing time. It helps too that the controls are pretty tight and offer a lot of flexibility of movement (the Hat in Time connections are more than the cameo), though sometimes I ran into depth/space issues due to the 2.5 D aspect with my character model. I would love casual games to move away from the Animal Crossing/Stardew Valley model and into something more directly interactable like this, so I would highly recommend this as a more passive game to return to now & then.
Some people may be instantly turned off by the overly "moe" aesthetic, but I think this actually hits a nice balance of not being overly cutesy in a way that rams it down your throat. Even though the audience of this game isn't really me, I found it to be a relaxing time. It helps too that the controls are pretty tight and offer a lot of flexibility of movement (the Hat in Time connections are more than the cameo), though sometimes I ran into depth/space issues due to the 2.5 D aspect with my character model. I would love casual games to move away from the Animal Crossing/Stardew Valley model and into something more directly interactable like this, so I would highly recommend this as a more passive game to return to now & then.
This review contains spoilers
*GARY'S GARDEN UPDATE"
This was a lovely little addition to an already great game. It takes the platforming controls of the game and creates a set of challenges focusing around it, which makes the game feel fresh in a way that is still familiar. I look forward to seeing how speedrunners approach this with all the tech they have developed, this level feels like it was designed with them in mind whilst still being approachable for more casual players.
I especially loved the the story that tied this whole experience together, was very heartwarming watching it unfold as you completed each challenge.
This was a lovely little addition to an already great game. It takes the platforming controls of the game and creates a set of challenges focusing around it, which makes the game feel fresh in a way that is still familiar. I look forward to seeing how speedrunners approach this with all the tech they have developed, this level feels like it was designed with them in mind whilst still being approachable for more casual players.
I especially loved the the story that tied this whole experience together, was very heartwarming watching it unfold as you completed each challenge.
absolute best game!! i loved it so much that i stole Niko's name :D i wanted to get all achievements but i think the steam achievements are glitched
Cute game! If a little buggy here and there. It's nice for a chill time and is decently dense for what it is, even if a lot of that substance is remixing stuff you've already done.
Fantastic cozy game. Decent game on its own. The art style is very nice on its own. Why have I not seen a single ad for this game?!? NO ONE TOLD ME GEARS FOR BREAKFAST PUBLISHED ANOTHER GAME. I DIDN'T PLAY IT UNTIL 2023 MAN.
The experience it promises is the experience you get. It is Mario Odyssey for trans furries and I think that's dope. Perfect length, plenty to do, if not a little repetitive.
hapy :D
here comes niko is pure, unbridled joy. it is awesome. the animals? adorable. the quests? fun. i love niko. YOU love niko. we ALL love niko.
here she comes!!!!!!
here comes niko is pure, unbridled joy. it is awesome. the animals? adorable. the quests? fun. i love niko. YOU love niko. we ALL love niko.
here she comes!!!!!!
It would probably be my favourite game of all time if it was longer and if I was able to INVERT THE CAMERA CONTROLS. Wtf is up with the menu????
super fun and short, reaaaaalllyyy wholesome stuff.
Play this. It's cute, it's fun and it's genuinely funny. A wonderfully smooth platformer with really enjoyable gameplay. It's worth playing, it's even more worth 100%ing.
a cute cozy queer collectathon game and i love it
A charming little game that has a pretty fun 3D moveset to vibe out in. I do think the repetition in some objectives does start to wear on the game in the latter half, and especially if you're going for 100%.