In the modern landscape, it feels like every other week we’re hit with an impressive new action RPG that plays nice, has all the right formulas going, but yet feels just a little “soulless.” Well, know I know why that is.
It’s because All Possible Futures has been channeling all the available soul in the universe for their debut hit game, The Plucky Squire. This game transcends mere gaming and stands as one of those rare pieces of art that threaten to change gaming as we know it.
It oozes passion and creativity, and gamers of all ages and fans of all genres can converge to experience what is undoubtedly one of the best games to grace our machines in 2024.
And sure, it’s a game made for kids — but us adults can really appreciate this work of art.
But enough flattery. What makes this game good? What drawbacks are there? And why should you pick up The Plucky Squire right now?
Let’s answer all of those questions and more, shall we?
The graphics: pure artwork
Firstly, this game is absolutely gorgeous. The art style is wonderfully pleasing on the eye, and this counts for all environments. Whether you’re in the 2D book, the 3D landscape or side-scrolling your way across the side of a coffee mug, the art is simply beautiful.
Every new area is unique in design and nothing feels out of place. Despite featuring relatively simple graphics most of the time, this game is a piece of art in itself. You can almost feel the passion oozing through the screen.
The concept: A work of genius
Popping between worlds is nothing new, but the concept of popping from a 2D book to a 3D world hasn’t been explored all that much in gaming. However, The Plucky Squire goes further, implementing various genres and mini-games all into one seamless experience.
The concept is simply brilliant, the same kind of brilliance that made Undertale such a hit in its day. And while The Plucky Squire isn’t quite as complex as that old gem, it stands beside it as a real masterpiece.
After all, games don’t need to be complex to be great.
The gameplay: like nothing you’ve ever experienced
Having a concept for a game that blends genres is not good enough. Creating something in which you could be side-scrolling one moment, and jogging through a detailed 3D world the next is an interesting thought, but that’s all it is without the proper execution.
And oh my, have All Possible Futures executed this brilliantly! The 2D movement is immediately satisfying. The controls feel super responsive, and you genuinely feel in control of every movement, every dodge, and every swing of your sword.
Good, tight, controls might feel like a pre-requisite to any decent game, but this game feels better than most I’ve played recently.
And then you switch to the 3D world and its the same thing, just unbelievably satisfying controls. However, camera angles can be a tad annoying in the 3D landscape, and this can make parkour (a necessity at some point) pretty frustrating at times.
And then you switch to the 2D side-scroller, and that’s just as good.
Overall, the gameplay is just fast enough to keep you engaged. Battles are fun, though they do get boring — but this is a difficulty issue, which I’ll get into a bit later.
The puzzles can be too easy yet tricky enough to make you feel accomplished when you solve one. And, finally, innovative game mechanics that allow you to manipulate the game world itself from outside is simply stunning, and so much fun.
Parallels can be drawn between this and Zelda, Mario 3D, Undertale, and many other influences, but it truly it its own unique game.
The characters: unique, believable, charming
Characters make a story for me. There’s no story if you don’t have interesting characters that you can relate to in some way, and that you actually like. The Plucky Squire knocks it right out of the park here, with vibrant characters that have distinct personalities, complete with their own well thought-out character arcs.
Each of the main cast must at some point face a unique challenge related to their something in their past, and watching these picture-book characters grow and overcome things has truly been a wondrous experience.
I honestly expected a “fun” game without substance, that is to say, a game that focused on hooking the player in with gameplay and then providing just enough dopamine to keep them hooked.
What I got was a character-focused story with some surprisingly deep themes. Brilliant, brilliant characters.
The story: a perfectly adequate tale
The story itself is flat and boring. Without such strong characters, the story would not stand on its own. It’s a tired old trope with a new skin and that’s pretty much all there is to it. There’s a pretty standard twist towards the end, but honestly nothing special here.
The thing is, the story doesn’t have to be strong. It’s almost a supplement to the amazing character you’ll get to know in your travels. And because of that, the story is absolutely adequate. No more was needed here, and going with a standard plot was a great call.
The difficulty: haha, what difficulty?
This is where the “made for kids” tag really disrupts the experience of us seasoned gamers…
This game is so easy it’s plain ridiculous. This is my biggest gripe — not enough difficulty. Not even in the final boss battle did I encounter any trouble at all, and I’m a guy who died to the first boss in Wukong, twice. I am certainly not the most skilled gamer around, but The Plucky Squire is too easy.
This is what makes the battles feel boring after a while. There’s no real danger, and hence no real sense of accomplishment when you beat an enemy that was supposed to be tough.
What bugs me here is that there are a lot of references in the game that only gamers from the 90’s will really get, and if you’re going to insert those into a game, surely a higher difficulty level for that market would make sense?
I sure hope we see some additional difficulty options later on, perhaps in an update or DLC, but for now, being too easy prevents this gem from getting a perfect score from me.
The experience in a nutshell: 9/10
Overall, The Plucky Squire is definitely one of those games that is more than a game, it’s a true experience through a delightful world. You’ll have moments where you laugh out loud — especially when you get the references.
There’s this one reference of The Lord of the Rings, and if you get it and hear the story that the team behind The Plucky Squire came up with, it’ll leave you in stitches. I had to pause my game for a bit there!
And then you’ll have moments of heartache, of concern, of devastation. Nothing to a crazy extend, this isn’t some hyper-realistic story that’ll have you living every moment, but this silly little game does tug on the emotions a fair bit.
And that is the hallmark of a good story, even if it is a bit short. It’ll only take you around eight to ten hours to get through, and you’ll be wanting more, I can promise you.
Overall, for what it is, The Plucky Squire is a masterpiece of the kind that only comes along once every five to ten years in the world of gaming. Absolutely brilliant.
Here’s the Steam page and the PlayStation store page, in case you want to give it a go yourself.
Published: Sep 17, 2024 12:04 pm