Developer/Publisher: Diversionary tactics. Quantum Astrophysics Guild Age Classification
: EU 3+ | USA All
Price : UK £10.99 | EU €14.99 | US $14.99 Release date
: 18. March 2021
Visualization code largely provided by the Quantum Astrophysics Guild
Otter Video Game Renaissance
If you’ve been following my work on LadiesGamers for the past year, you may know that I love these little brown, furry creatures called otters. As I mentioned in my article about World Otter Day, there is a huge shortage of otter-based video games. Then, out of nowhere, we had the Ottoman Empire in 2020, and now, in 2021, we have Space Otter Charlie. Is this the beginning of an Otter video game renaissance? Let’s hope so.
Space Otter Charlie sprinkles information about sea otters as you play, so in honor of that, I’ll sprinkle some of my own facts into this review.
Made from otter: There are now 13 species of otters in the world. All but one of these species are now listed as threatened.
Throwing the earth into space
The humans have ascended and left Earth, which is in a devastated state. Garbage everywhere and a climate too hot for the animals left behind. A group of sea otters took on the task of building a space rocket and finding a new home for all the remaining animals. You play as the charming Charlie who, with the help of his otter friends, must explore the abandoned remains of various spaceships that have been taken over by a deranged AI.
The story is presented in colorful storybook-style art panels and is kept simple, but very humorous. It was hard not to laugh at the jokes between Charlie and his teammates presented in the text boxes. But there’s a lot of heart between the jokes. This story is suitable for players of all ages and levels. As you explore the spaceship, you will often find disks that teach real facts about otters, making this game gently educational and fun for you.
Otter fact: Thanks to their massive strength, some species of otters can fend off attacks by crocodiles.
Floating in space
Space Otter Charlie is a 2D platformer with a little twist. Because Charlie is wearing a spacesuit, he can jump from platform to platform in zero gravity. This kind of gameplay reminds me of Dandara, the brilliant Metroidvania available on Switch. The main difference is that Charlie can land on any platform in the level, and you also have more control over Charlie’s movement as he jumps from one platform to another. In fact, you can ask it to just float in space. The flow of this feeling is very similar to how a sea otter would swim through the water, and I have to say that’s an impressive attention to detail on the part of the developers.
The graphics themselves are simple, colorful, papery sprites. It’s simple and doesn’t innovate. You explore metal spaceships with a small selection of robot enemies to attack. The game feels like it was made on a shoestring budget, but the developers have done a good job of relying on as much as possible to make the experience fun and enjoyable.
James Fact: Dandara is the second review James has written for Ladies Gamers.
At first, the controls take some getting used to, because it’s not a typical platform game. It builds you up slowly and gets you used to things – a bit like a baby sea otter, I guess. In no time at all, you’ll be bouncing from one platform to another, dodging electrical hazards and fire, and shooting bad robots with your space gun. You can also use it to activate switches and solve fairly simple puzzles. In addition to swimming, you can hold the ZL on the platforms you land on and pull a cool slide. All in all, it’s very nice and fast, both in portable and TV mode.
Otter fact: In Singapore, the otter thrives. The most famous family is the Bishan family.
Light experiment
I think the main criticism of the experience is that some players will find it a bit easy. It’s very difficult to make a game that appeals to everyone, and Space Otter Charlie is aimed at a target audience that mostly consists of casual players. Checkpoints are frequent, dying has no consequences, and the game makes it very clear where your next goal is.
The other major downside is that the game length is very short (five hours at most), despite the fact that I absolutely enjoyed everything the game had to offer. There are new spacesuits and upgrades for the ships. You can also collect several new animal crew members to join you on your spaceship, but this doesn’t really add anything to the gameplay. This can be a good thing for people who have an active lifestyle and don’t spend a lot of time playing with their hands. But it definitely left me wanting more.
Although short, I can say with certainty that the experience was incredibly entertaining. The only bugs I encountered were collectibles dropped by enemies and stuck in walls. But that didn’t stop the game.
Otter fact: Sea otters are the only otters that give birth in the water. All other species give birth on land.
Otter versus Otter
The game also includes a multiplayer mode where up to four people can compete against each other locally in various game modes, such as. B. So Urchin (collect as many sea urchins as possible) and Furry Fury (death match). It’s a welcome addition, but I think I’d rather be able to just play co-op or have some sort of optional co-op mode to play with a second player. Multiplayer modes are great, but it’s often hard to convince casual gamer friends to try multiplayer modes like this, say, Mario-based game on the Switch.
Otter fact: When the Ottry is two months old, it pushes its young into the water to teach them to swim.
Otter This World
Space Otter Charlie is a delightful and engaging experience. Every time I picked up a game, I had a constant smile on my face. Some players may find the game too simple, but if you’re looking for a heartwarming otter platformer, this is it! Space Otter Charlie is a welcome addition to any Switch, and that’s a fact!
Last block : I like it very much.
If my review didn’t convince you, maybe this trailer will. This is the main source of inspiration for the facts used in this review.
Dim:
How do you load…