Sugar Mess has been on my record of video games to play for fairly a while. One motive is that they went the additional mile by releasing a playable demo some time again. I consider builders who launch a demo earlier than the official launch are assured of their product’s high quality. This strategy builds hype within the “small” PSVR2 market, the place we hardly ever see playable demos and even rolling demos earlier than launch day, if in any respect.
So, the groundwork was set, and whereas I did benefit from the demo, I struggled to see the way it could possibly be expanded right into a full recreation. The demo had two ranges and was basically a really primary capturing gallery with pretty colors—nothing extra, nothing much less.
A CASUAL LOOK…
Sugar Mess is fantastically offered all through the complete recreation. They even went the additional mile by designing the story and menu system to resemble a kids’s pop-up ebook, full with page-flipping to proceed the story and so forth.
The creators chargeable for the map, ebook, UI, and recreation graphics undeniably show a powerful grasp of the best way to visually current a recreation on this style. Regardless of its seemingly simplistic particulars, it radiates plentiful appeal and, crucially, showcases an immensely interesting aesthetic that captivated me. In essence, it mirrors a pleasant, sugar-coated arcade recreation that will have been completely fitted to a theme park coin-op of their arcade.
The music all through the sport is well-crafted and shortly creates a cheerful ambiance from the get-go, among the music ranges even add some correctly catchy tunes that you will see that your self hymning to whereas enjoying.
The tutorial is simple to comply with and clearly designed to introduce you to the sport in a sugar-coated approach. The weapons have a particular feel and appear that works effectively, and the enemies (truffles?) and power-ups are visually interesting. All the things has a vibrant, Sweet Crush-like model that’s flashy and attractive.
BUT BUT BUT…THIS IS MORE THAN A GALLERY SHOOT ‘EM UP…
The large shock with Sugar Mess to me was that this recreation is definitely extra of a mini-game compilation than a gallery capturing sort of recreation, sure I truly by no means researched a lot as, yeah, I prefer to expertise video games with out spoilers so I need to admit that when I received to stage 3 within the recreation, effectively, I received very pleasantly shocked to see that inside 3 ranges there was already 3 completely totally different mechanics used.
There’s a variety of variation that’s for sure, single display screen and on rails capturing galleries in addition to music mini-games and sure there are even some puzzles too. Oh, and there’s even a mini-game on an precise arcade machine too, and most if not all play fairly effectively.
An preliminary statement I made was relating to the dimensions of the map display screen used for choosing ranges to play. Early on, I couldn’t assist however assume, “At this fee, it’ll be over in a heartbeat.”
Sadly, I used to be right.
Brief And Bittersweet?
Initially, the sport isn’t very giant, nevertheless it does supply some replay worth. When you’re into trophies, there’s undoubtedly a variety of replaying available. Nevertheless, trophy searching isn’t for everybody, and to be trustworthy, attaining S+ rankings on all ranges would possibly solely add an hour of gameplay for seasoned gamers.
The arcade cupboard within the recreation might be essentially the most difficult half. It’s a primary platform recreation the place you run and soar by way of numerous ranges, avoiding enemies and gathering sweet. Though the gameplay needs to be comparatively easy, the developer selected to make you management all the pieces as for those who have been on an actual arcade machine. Sadly, this turns what might have been a considerably enjoyable expertise right into a janky mess. Why not let the participant management the arcade utilizing analog sticks and buttons as a substitute?
That mentioned, the arcade expertise continues to be fulfilling. The CRT filter is superb and carefully mimics the actual factor, nevertheless it might have been extra enjoyable and, maybe most significantly, extra exact.
The Verdict…
Sugar Mess – Let’s Play Jolly Battle VR is the sort of recreation you turn on for some lighthearted enjoyable with household or VR newcomers. Whereas the visuals and audio are completely fitted to such a recreation and the enjoyable is simple, it might not maintain gamers’ curiosity over the long run as a result of an absence of extras and hidden bonuses. The expertise feels fairly plain with out many unlockable rewards. Moreover, the value on PSVR2 is comparatively excessive in comparison with different variations, however a 30% low cost would make it an ideal worth. Children love the sport, which is essential, however I personally really feel a bit underwhelmed. That is disappointing as a result of the sport has a stable basis, and with a couple of enhancements and additional improvement, it might have change into vital. The present rating of seven/10 is nearer to 78/100, and with a couple of patches and extra content material or a lower cost, it might simply be an 8/10.
Sugar Mess – Let’s Play Jolly Battle VR is offered for many VR platforms and at numerous costs, verify the hyperlinks out, get it on Meta Quest, add it to your wishlist on Steam, or grab it on PICO, or possibly on give one of the best model a attempt, the PSVR2 one.
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