Shiftlings is an engaging puzzle platformer that’s hindered by repetitive gameplay and puzzles which often provide feelings of relief rather than satisfaction.
For those of you who haven’t seen it, Shiftlings sees you controlling two characters simultaneously or cooperatively. While there isn’t a great deal of back-story, you play as two janitors who are part of a reality gameshow where they must complete environmental puzzles. This might not sound like much, but there is outside commentary from a host who is reminiscent of Bruce Forsyth. The reason for the game allowing you to play in singleplayer or cooperatively is because both characters are tethered together by an air tube, which means that one player has to be inflated while the other can be of regular size. This does make for some interesting puzzles, but it also lessens the experience.
The main aspect of Shiftlings which I found to be frustrating was just how repetitive the game seemed to be. Having already played the game for several hours, I feel as though I’ve seen everything which the game has to offer. There are five worlds to explore, with ten levels in each and while the core mechanics are satisfying early on, it feels as though it drags on once you reach the third world. There are plenty of ‘ahhh!’ moments when you realise what you have to do, but this loses its appeal once you’ve learned how the character switching works. For a game with such a vibrant art style and comical characters, you’d think that Shiftlings offers a great amount of humour.
The two main characters don’t communicate at all and the only humour Shiftlings is able to provide is through the look of the green janitor, who just looks as bemused as I did while playing Shiftlings. It’s easy to see what Rock Pocket Games have tried to do with the two characters as they seem to be in the ‘Pinky & The Brain’ mould, with one smart alien and their dim-witted partner. The aforementioned gameshow host does nothing to provide humorous dialogue either and instead sounds like that one friend we all have who is constantly telling poor jokes while proceeding to elbow you in the side saying, “Eh? Eh?” The tone of the game doesn’t balance out the frustrating aspects of the game, but thankfully Shiftlings isn’t all doom and gloom.
The platforming in Shiftlings is really enjoyable and it’s at its best when everything is new to you in the opening two worlds. While it’s relatively simple and there are no enemies to avoid, the main feature of the game which sees you being able to shrink one character while making the other larger can often lead to some unique ways of solving puzzles. While it’s not the easiest thing to explain, the larger player can drag the smaller one over platforms and the smaller character can jump higher, which often leads to them making the smaller one larger to catapult the trailing companion behind them. *phew* (If you don’t know what I mean, please see the video above).
The way in which the world advances is refreshing, too. The opening world gradually introduces you to the key mechanics, but the second world provides electrical puzzles where you must time your movements perfectly and use objects effectively. With features such as floating rays, moving platforms and even cannons, there is so much more than cooperative platforming to enjoy, but the main mechanics never really change and, overall, the game suffers from quantity over quality. These features add plenty of varying puzzles, which is great for the most part, but the game is just too long with too many similar puzzles. For someone who is looking to take their time and relax in a puzzle game, Shiftlings is ideal. Having to play it for review may have hindered my experience of it as trying to play every level and not really taking my time with it seems to have lessened the game for me.
In terms of collectibles, there are three cola bottles to collect in every level and these are in some ridiculous places which require precise platforming and ingenious moves. They are the only real reason to replay the game, unless you possibly play it through on singleplayer and then team up with a local co-op partner. The game is jam-packed with levels and there isn’t really any need to replay the game as you’ve seen it and done it all before. Sadly the experience will be no different.
Shiftlings starts off being an enjoyable and challenging puzzle platformer, but it soon becomes frustrating and predictable once you get used to the mechanics. Although new features are introduced throughout, the gameplay largely stays the same and it feels like the levels have been put in just for the sake of it. With that being said, the platforming and art style are refreshing and the game is enjoyable when played in short bursts. However, if you play it in huge chunks, your frustrations will continually grow.