I sat down to play Bugsnax based on the promise that it was inspired by games such as Dark Cloud, Ape Escape, and Viva Pinata; games I very much enjoyed in the past. While the game avoids being outright derivative of any of these older titles, it does struggle to develop an identity of its own, making for an experience with a relatively low ceiling despite its endearing qualities.
And boy does it have some endearing qualities. Bugsnax is quite the colorful game filled with inspired visual design. The titular creatures are amusing visual puns, and the NPCs look to be straight out of a children's picture book. Bugsnax is enjoyable to look at and that fits nicely with its overall relaxed pace and lack of demands on the player.
The moment to moment gameplay of Bugsnax is also quite enjoyable. Each Bugsnak is a puzzle unto itself in how one catches it, and more often than not there is more than one solution. While it sometimes feels janky, largely thanks to the physics engine, the game engenders creativity from the player. The less prescriptive an open(ish) world experience feels, the more it justifies itself, and Bugsnax does that well.
I would mark the narrative as another positive, though I don't want to overstate things. It does just enough to create a hook in the investigation of the Bugsnax and the island they inhabit, and while the conclusion isn't extremely compelling, that's all the game needed to do to stop the moseying-about from feeling pointless. It helps when the world and its creatures do so much of the heavy lifting; it relieves the mediocre script of the responsibility of carrying the narrative.
Mediocrity, unfortunately, is something that pervades the rest of the game. Every quality the developer's wanted to ape from their favorite games is bungled in its implementation. Town building from Dark Cloud? Rather than actually constructing a town to your liking, characters fill pre-determined slots with no customization. Boss encounters with boss snax from an action game like Ape Escape? Scuttled by the intersection of the clunky physics engine and the fact that the player lacks a health bar or fail state entirely. Collecting all of the Bugsnak species to enjoy at your leisure like cultiating pinata in Viva Pinata? Completely meaningless without a customizable living space for the Bugsnax. (There is a pen for you to dump them in, but vexingly the player has no way of choosing the snax that roam around there, negating its purpose) The developer's implemented a grab bag's worth of features from other titles while failing to understand their function in the first place; a very much "ideas-guy" trajectory.
Do these problems ruin the game? No, but many questions are raised. Why is there a limit to the number of snax a player can hold? Why are there so many sauce varieties when so many snax all like the same sauce? Why is being set on fire so infuriating? Why are there so many mail sidequests, and why are they all identical? Why both Bunger and BBQ Bunger? Why are its environmental puzzles so insultingly easy? Why, oh why, does it set the time to 11PM every time you finish a sidequest?
I've made reference to it earlier, but I want to take the time to talk about the physics engine specifically. So many moments in the game are made more frustrating due to the physics-wrestling the player must engage in. There's a sidequest to climb a mountain using the jump pad, but the real challenge is trying to set the pad on the footholds without it just sliding off. There's a boss where one must launch orbs at a large Bugsnak, but half of the projectiles one fires lose all momentum whenever they slightly clip another one of the orbs the devs chose to litter the arena with. Most of the game, most of the snak catching, is physics based in some way, and while its never non-functional, small issues continuously arise to needle the player.
Despite all of this, I enjoyed my time with Bugsnax. I think with a more competent dev team and a clearer vision behind the project it could have been something great. As it is, it's just fine. I caught all of the Snax, and I'm content to never think of it again.
I caught all of the Snax, and now I'm full.
I caught all of the Snax, and I spoiled my appetite.
I raided my pantry, and now I'm all out of snax.
I finished snak time, and now it's nap time.
I don't know, choose one.
And boy does it have some endearing qualities. Bugsnax is quite the colorful game filled with inspired visual design. The titular creatures are amusing visual puns, and the NPCs look to be straight out of a children's picture book. Bugsnax is enjoyable to look at and that fits nicely with its overall relaxed pace and lack of demands on the player.
The moment to moment gameplay of Bugsnax is also quite enjoyable. Each Bugsnak is a puzzle unto itself in how one catches it, and more often than not there is more than one solution. While it sometimes feels janky, largely thanks to the physics engine, the game engenders creativity from the player. The less prescriptive an open(ish) world experience feels, the more it justifies itself, and Bugsnax does that well.
I would mark the narrative as another positive, though I don't want to overstate things. It does just enough to create a hook in the investigation of the Bugsnax and the island they inhabit, and while the conclusion isn't extremely compelling, that's all the game needed to do to stop the moseying-about from feeling pointless. It helps when the world and its creatures do so much of the heavy lifting; it relieves the mediocre script of the responsibility of carrying the narrative.
Mediocrity, unfortunately, is something that pervades the rest of the game. Every quality the developer's wanted to ape from their favorite games is bungled in its implementation. Town building from Dark Cloud? Rather than actually constructing a town to your liking, characters fill pre-determined slots with no customization. Boss encounters with boss snax from an action game like Ape Escape? Scuttled by the intersection of the clunky physics engine and the fact that the player lacks a health bar or fail state entirely. Collecting all of the Bugsnak species to enjoy at your leisure like cultiating pinata in Viva Pinata? Completely meaningless without a customizable living space for the Bugsnax. (There is a pen for you to dump them in, but vexingly the player has no way of choosing the snax that roam around there, negating its purpose) The developer's implemented a grab bag's worth of features from other titles while failing to understand their function in the first place; a very much "ideas-guy" trajectory.
Do these problems ruin the game? No, but many questions are raised. Why is there a limit to the number of snax a player can hold? Why are there so many sauce varieties when so many snax all like the same sauce? Why is being set on fire so infuriating? Why are there so many mail sidequests, and why are they all identical? Why both Bunger and BBQ Bunger? Why are its environmental puzzles so insultingly easy? Why, oh why, does it set the time to 11PM every time you finish a sidequest?
I've made reference to it earlier, but I want to take the time to talk about the physics engine specifically. So many moments in the game are made more frustrating due to the physics-wrestling the player must engage in. There's a sidequest to climb a mountain using the jump pad, but the real challenge is trying to set the pad on the footholds without it just sliding off. There's a boss where one must launch orbs at a large Bugsnak, but half of the projectiles one fires lose all momentum whenever they slightly clip another one of the orbs the devs chose to litter the arena with. Most of the game, most of the snak catching, is physics based in some way, and while its never non-functional, small issues continuously arise to needle the player.
Despite all of this, I enjoyed my time with Bugsnax. I think with a more competent dev team and a clearer vision behind the project it could have been something great. As it is, it's just fine. I caught all of the Snax, and I'm content to never think of it again.
I caught all of the Snax, and now I'm full.
I caught all of the Snax, and I spoiled my appetite.
I raided my pantry, and now I'm all out of snax.
I finished snak time, and now it's nap time.
I don't know, choose one.
LeonardoMF93
1 year ago