tight puzzle-platformer game with a great tile-based mechanic where the main character qbby can grow blocks out of his body to use for a variety of tasks. while initially simple, the game quickly expands qbby's mechanical vocabulary without introducing any new abilities via the wide variety of level gimmicks to overcome. qbby's blocks can be used to hold switches in place, pull qbby up to higher places, form stairs, and shield him from lasers depending on the situation, and the best puzzles in the game require designing block structures that can perform multiple functions when they interact with the environment. on the level design side, the game dips its toe into several different puzzle genres, including physics-based moving blocks, tetris-style line clearing, and lemmings=style AI manipulation, among others. the levels themselves rarely stick to one structure, veering between larger single-room puzzles and chains of short puzzles that focus on escalating a single design concept. a single idea rarely gets extended past 15 minutes of puzzle solving before something new appears, which keeps the pacing thankfully breezy.

beyond reaching the end of each level, there are also collectable crowns to look out for in each level. my first impression was that they would be like the strawberries in celeste where they function as a heightened, optional challenge, and in some levels they serve this purpose, which works amazingly well when it reveals the flexibility in approaches to each puzzle. however, in a lot of other cases they serve as a subtle guide for how to solve more abstract puzzles, which I found fascinating. to keep these crowns exclusive, the designers imposed a limit on the number of blocks you may create before the crowns are disabled, which I personally don't mind considering how generous, accurate, and quick the checkpoint reset system is.

there's also a fleeting plot that has some sort of world-actualizing consequence for the main characters; I frequently played this on the couch around my roommates and I kept looking away during the cutscenes, so I don't really have a take for what goes on other than that it's cool. the graphics are pleasingly sparse as well, and they look crisp on the 3ds screen. the music was not my cup of tea personally, given that it was mainly minimalist chiptune stuff. as a pick-up-and-play game the presentation mainly gave way to how quick it was to pick it up and work through a puzzle, even for ones that stumped me for a bit. I haven't worked through all of the post-game puzzles, but I've found the ones I've played so far to be a great challenge that capitalizes on the ideas demonstrated prior. between these games, kirby, part-time ufo, and picross 3d, HAL lab is a fascinating force in the realm of puzzle-adjacent games.

Not too bad, but nothing special. Each world/zone brings about a new gimmick which gets used in increasing difficulty for 5 or so levels before entering the next zone and getting another new gimmick to play with. For the most part the game is pretty easy due to the fact it keeps balancing itself around having to use at least 1 level per zone just to teach the player a new mechanic. Though I didn't try the post-game levels which is where I imagine the true challenge lies.

Kind of concerned how they managed to stretch this into 3 sequels.

Es un pequeño plataformas-puzle sobre Qbby, un cuadrado que crea más cuadrados creando plataformas para atravesar los niveles. El juego está desarrollado por HAL Laboratory (Kirby) y la verdad es que se nota, el estilo es impecable y aunque sencillo es liso y limpio, el diseño de niveles es donde más brilla el juego. Cada mundo tiene 7 niveles de unos 3 o 4 minutos cada uno, en el primero se introduce una mecánica nueva y se complica durante el trancurso del mundo. Además no hay pocos mundos, cuando acabé el primer mundo me sorprendió que hubiera más, cuando terminé los 5 mundos el juego me recompensó con otros 5, cada vez habían más y más niveles y para nada algo malo. Cada nivel tiene 1 o 2 coronas que solo se pueden recoger si consigues llegar a ellas usando pocos bloques, lo que añade profundidad e impide el uso del prueba y error, te obliga a pensar en los puzles. Además hay cosméticos, música y 16 retos desbloqueables que puedes comprar con el dinero que ganas cogiendo coronas. Por si fuera poco, cuando te pasas el juego deciden recompensarte con aún más niveles... todos ellos con una jugabilidad fantástica. Y si te atascas en algún puzle a las malas puedes pagar una o dos monedas de juego por la solución.
Lo más impresionante de todo es que este juego cuesta 5 euros. Se nota en historia, estilo y música siendo todo ello simple pero aún estilizado, aún así tiene contenido para días y días y con un diseño de niveles tan bueno lo demás se pasa por alto.

Overall Score: ✅82%

So I thought before the Nintendo 3DS eShop stops adding funs in the 28th; I would get some games off of it for one last time. I decided to get the original trilogy BOXBOY games and so far I think I've picked a really good choice.

the original BOXBOY is a simple but really charming and fun 2D platformer with really well thought out puzzles that star off simple at first; but get harder the more you progress, if Nintendo ever decides to remaster the first three games on the switch, I highly recommend it.

Veredito: carismático, simples e direto.

Boxboy é o clássico jogo de portátil à moda antiga: poucas mecânicas, partidas curtas, não é muito ambicioso nem faz nada revolucionário. E tudo bem. Foi claramente feito pra matar o tempo no busão ou na fila do banco, não pra te envolver em uma história super épica. Sua mecânica central (praticamente a única) é criar fileiras de caixas para atravessar as fases, seja usando de ponte, de escudo ou de 'corda com gancho'.

...e é só isso. Tem uma trilha sonora bacana, gráficos simplórios e fofinhos, e alguns colecionáveis que desbloqueiam tanto skins bonitinhas como fases extras de desafio pra quem quiser. É relaxante, simpático, divertido e isso é suficiente.

Kind of mixed on how I feel about this one- it is very charming and simple, but I also feel like I struggled with how to get the boxes to get set up right even when I gave up and used play coins to splurge on the solutions. I’m debating on whether I want to get the rest or not, but I know I sure as heck am not getting all those crowns.

I really do like the minimalist style, though. There’s a really neat point at the end of the uhhh “story mode” that kind of surprised me in terms of presentation, and the costumes are very cute. Yeah… I probably should get the rest before the eShop dies.

Boxboy!, a 2015 puzzle game released exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS eShop, is a challenge to say the least. The simple gameplay - expanding the titular Box Boy (named Qbby) into a set number of individual boxes to make stairs and walkways to traverse hazards - seems easy enough at first, but becomes increasingly complex as more and more gameplay elements are introduced. The simple beginning levels consisting of using three boxes to fill a gap full of spikes, walking over the gap, grabbing the collectible crown for that level, and sauntering to the exit; eventually gives way to complex puzzles full of sticky tiles, instant-death lazer beams, moving platforms, and switches that raise and lower gates and move otherwise immovable blocks. With over 150 individual levels scattered throughout 22 different worlds, HAL Labortory will work your brain and your patience in this first entry in the Boxboy Series.