As a lifelong Zelda fan, I’m at all times hesitant when different builders got down to make a recreation so clearly impressed by Nintendo’s acclaimed motion-journey collection. I discover that the puzzle design by no means fairly reaches Zelda’s extremely lofty bar, and I’m normally left wishing I used to be simply enjoying Ocarina of Time or A Hyperlink Between Worlds as an alternative. However The Plucky Squire breaks that development, with a mix of intelligent mind teasers, easy however efficient swordplay, and a brave silent protagonist that will really feel proper at residence in Hyrule. The journey is held again by an excessively wordy script and a few critical pacing points in its ultimate act, however this debut recreation from developer All Attainable Futures continues to be a journey price taking.
The Plucky Squire’s elevator pitch is sensible: You play as Jot, the hero of a kids’s e-book who learns early on that he’s, the truth is, simply the hero of a kids’s e-book. This results in a surprisingly meta story the place Jot leaps between the 2D pages of his image e-book and the 3D actual world round it, which is represented by the childhood bed room of a younger Plucky Squire superfan named Sam who collects all of Jot’s tales and merchandise. That distinctive premise paves the way in which for The Plucky Squire’s impressed puzzle design.
Whereas inside the story’s fantastically animated depictions of seashores, villages, and mountaintops, Jot can manipulate the e-book’s textual content to change his actuality and get previous obstacles. Want a closed gate to swing open? Jot can actually decide the phrase “Open” off the web page from one other sentence within the e-book and swap it into the prose mendacity in entrance of the shut gate. It performs out like a (considerably) lighter model of Baba Is You’s rule manipulation, and it’s a blast to experiment with totally different mixtures of nouns and adjectives to see how the world reacts, like turning a tiny frog into a large frog for no purpose apart from desirous to see if it might work. (Spoilers: It did.) It’s not the most versatile system – every state of affairs with this idea solely features a handful of eligible phrases Jot can interchange – but it surely’s nonetheless a extremely spectacular mechanic the builders use in a number of good methods all through the journey. Via the ability of language, I crammed a drained moat with water, turned sturdy columns into crumbling ones in an effort to topple them onto an enemy blocking my path, and an entire lot extra.
Wordplay is only one good approach The Plucky Squire takes benefit of its storybook setting. Jot can even come out of the e-book and switch from an cute hand-drawn 2D character into a completely 3D model of himself that’s paying homage to the toyetic look of the Hyperlink’s Awakening remake and the upcoming Echoes of Knowledge. When outdoors of the e-book, Jot can play God and immediately manipulate the world inside, with powers like tilting the e-book on its facet to slip blocks round and even flipping again to an earlier web page to seize a phrase or merchandise that he wants on the present one. Backtracking via pages to search out The Plucky Squire’s optionally available hidden collectibles additionally resulted in some cool “aha!” moments, and I might see myself going again to snag those I missed. The e-book’s myriad makes use of compelled me to zoom out and assume greater in regards to the instruments at my disposal, and The Plucky Squire hits some superior puzzle-fixing highs inside these segments.
The solely problem is what number of hints The Plucky Squire continuously throws at you. Earlier than I used to be set free on most puzzles, Jot’s endearing companions Violet, Thrash, and Moonbeard have an entire dialog about what you’ll want to do. This inclusion is much more complicated while you keep in mind The Plucky Squire’s effectively-applied optionally available trace system, the place a recurring character that’s just about at all times round will let you know precisely what you’ll want to do subsequent should you ask for assist. It’s irritating that the builders lay out an excessive amount of data via necessary dialogue somewhat than leaving it to the trace system so skilled gamers can attempt to piece all of it collectively with out hand-holding.
In truth, chattiness is an issue all through the whole lot of The Plucky Squire. Characters are at all times stopping to have prolonged conversations about what to do subsequent, and whereas it’s all effectively-written dialogue, I discovered myself desirous to mash via these intensive sequences to get again to the motion. The incessant over-rationalization of Jot’s mission to take down the evil Humgrump is a technique The Plucky Squire feels aimed squarely at a youthful viewers, however the witty humor and lighthearted tone simply barely put it aside from changing into a serious disadvantage.
The outdoors world goes effectively past the pages as Jot explores Sam’s bed room to search out new skills to work together together with his e-book. These exploration sections are a beautiful change of tempo from the puzzling nature of the storybook, and Sam’s bed room is a delight to run round. Such as you’d count on from a younger boy’s room, toys and LEGO bricks are littered all over the place, and Jot platforms throughout enjoying playing cards and constructing blocks to search out his subsequent improve. In these sections, Jot can hop out and in of sticky notes and youngsters’s drawings, which makes the entire thing really feel like a inventive tackle A Hyperlink Between Worlds’ wall-merging mechanic. There are just a few minor technical points in the actual world – I seen some shadows flickering out and in and I had one onerous crash – however for essentially the most half The Plucky Squire appeared and ran nice on PlayStation 5.
Fight works the identical whether or not Jot is in or out of the e-book. He can swing his sword, throw it at enemies like a boomerang, and make use of highly effective leap assaults and spin assaults. These strikes can all be upgraded at outlets that pop up throughout the land of Mojo, the place you spend foreign money that’s principally discovered – fittingly – by slicing grass. The swordplay is easy, enjoyable, and infrequently difficult, however for a recreation principally centered on puzzles, I don’t thoughts that the fights are primary bouts to tear via in your option to the following large riddle.
The Plucky Squire can also be constantly working to shake issues up. There are many 2D platforming segments inside the e-book’s pages, and typically the e-book turns vertically to offer issues a recent perspective. However The Plucky Squire actually flexes its inventive muscle tissues inside the minigame segments that crop up recurrently all through Jot’s journey. There are homages to issues like Punch-Out!!, rhythm video games, shmups, and extra that I received’t spoil right here. Whether or not you’re uppercutting a honey badger or combating off aliens whereas flying round inside a toy field, each minigame right here is so charming and enjoyable to play, and I beloved seeing how the builders shook up the artwork model and character designs for each.
With nice pacing between the storybook, actual world, and minigames for the primary 5 hours of the roughly eight-hour marketing campaign, it’s jarring when The Plucky Squire utterly loses its stride within the ultimate act. First, Jot loses all his skills, and also you’re compelled to undergo a really generic stealth part to get well all of the powers you already spent your complete recreation gathering. It’d be like if Metroid ripped all of Samus’ upgrades away moments earlier than the ultimate boss and compelled you to collect the Morph Ball and Grapple Beam a second time. What’s worse, this part takes place in a wholly monochrome world, sucking all the enjoyment and colour out of Sam’s bed room and turning it right into a boring trudge over drained floor. This part doesn’t take all too lengthy, but it surely’s adopted up with The Plucky Squire’s ultimate dungeon, which is a repetitive march via samey rooms together with a rhythm stealth minigame I needed to repeat three separate occasions. After dealing with a ultimate boss that additionally goes on a part too lengthy, I used to be able to be achieved earlier than the credit even began rolling. It’s a disgrace, as a result of The Plucky Squire is so pleasant for many of its runtime, however that final third sadly leaves behind a bitter aftertaste.