I mean, before even playing the game, you know that Snake Pass will be very good, you get to control a cute, friendly snake! The fact that actually playing the game is also wonderful is just a bonus. The control scheme of Noodle is a really interesting one that is particularly effective at making you entirely rethink how to approach even the most basic of platforming challenges, replacing thoughts of jumping to new areas with understanding how to slither up the bits of environment surrounding you. It ends up having a dynamic more akin to a puzzle platformer than a more traditional one, where almost every obstacle's challenge stems from working out how to approach something as opposed to the execution of that approach itself.
It's not as if the game doesn't require good execution at all either though, since the control scheme is initially pretty tough to wrap your head around all the intricacies of, particularly the careful balance you often need to strike between being very meticulous and being fast. The level design plays into this very nicely as well, with a lot of sections being built in such a way that you're able to bypass a lot of seemingly difficult challenges if you fully come to terms with the nuances of your movement, leading to an experience that feels rife with discovery that largely feels self-motivated. It goes a long way in making you feel like you're beginning to understand the unconventional methods you need to take to accomplish basic traversal without feeling directly enforced either, leading to a unique experience in a way that isn't as immediately apparent as the fact that you're playing as a snake.
The presentation elevates things that bit further as well, with the beautiful, lush environments and fantastic soundtrack making it pretty pleasant to exist in these levels even if you're stuck at a particular section for an extended period of time while you're further refining your movement. One thing I think would've been nice is something to have added a bit more variety to the individual stages though, as while what the 15 levels here have still make for a fun time, it does begin to wear out its welcome a tiny bit by the final couple, and I think it's just because of the lack of real variety beyond a couple of clever obstacles that still didn't feel like quite enough to differentiate one level from the next. It's definitely not a dealbreaker since there's some appeal in coiling around the various poles and platforms to reach greater heights even after you've done it countless times, but some more unique stage elements would definitely elevate this further. Even with that said though, this is great, would highly recommend for people to play this if they're interested in seeing a rather fresh take on collectathons.
It's not as if the game doesn't require good execution at all either though, since the control scheme is initially pretty tough to wrap your head around all the intricacies of, particularly the careful balance you often need to strike between being very meticulous and being fast. The level design plays into this very nicely as well, with a lot of sections being built in such a way that you're able to bypass a lot of seemingly difficult challenges if you fully come to terms with the nuances of your movement, leading to an experience that feels rife with discovery that largely feels self-motivated. It goes a long way in making you feel like you're beginning to understand the unconventional methods you need to take to accomplish basic traversal without feeling directly enforced either, leading to a unique experience in a way that isn't as immediately apparent as the fact that you're playing as a snake.
The presentation elevates things that bit further as well, with the beautiful, lush environments and fantastic soundtrack making it pretty pleasant to exist in these levels even if you're stuck at a particular section for an extended period of time while you're further refining your movement. One thing I think would've been nice is something to have added a bit more variety to the individual stages though, as while what the 15 levels here have still make for a fun time, it does begin to wear out its welcome a tiny bit by the final couple, and I think it's just because of the lack of real variety beyond a couple of clever obstacles that still didn't feel like quite enough to differentiate one level from the next. It's definitely not a dealbreaker since there's some appeal in coiling around the various poles and platforms to reach greater heights even after you've done it countless times, but some more unique stage elements would definitely elevate this further. Even with that said though, this is great, would highly recommend for people to play this if they're interested in seeing a rather fresh take on collectathons.