When we fell off platforms, we popped back up unharmed. Glo & Bulder’s expressive chirps and grumbles inspired fond memories of Wall-E. The folk-inspired music was appropriately mystical and added a lot to the overall experience. ➕ A fast-travel system allowed me to go back to areas where I didn’t finish a puzzle or find a collectible. In a game where jumping accuracy was important, this was an unwelcome complication. There were too many objects to render everything in real time. ➖ After our heroes grew all the plants and crystals in a level, the Switch sometimes experienced “chug” or slowdown.
➖ At around the midpoint, cluing largely dropped away and I was convinced I was missing something obvious, which led to frustration. When we were stuck in an area, we were stuck good. ➖ The game uses a hub-world system where we could access two areas at a time. The first time I (as Bulder, the rock) stood on her head (as Glo, the star) to get across a pond, we literally LOL’ed. ➕ Fun moments delighted me and my co-op partner. ➕ Pac-Man style interludes between levels moved the love story along in a subtle but touching way. When we did miss jumps, we were forced to repeat multi-step processes to get back into position. My ability to jump accurately, for example, helped a great deal. If both co-op partners are new to platformers, they will find some frustrating moments. This makes it more approachable to inexperienced gamers. Unlike most platformers, there were no enemies to avoid. Pode had a good tutorial area at the beginning and she and was offering solutions right away. She was drawn in by the visuals and the characters, but loved the fun of getting here-to-there. I played the first half of Pode with a partner who didn’t have a lot of experience with platform puzzlers. We encountered waterfalls, darkness, and a seemingly endless number of cliffs that were slightly too high to jump up to. The power of nature was our constant companion, but just as often, it was the source of an obstacle before us. In each area of Pode, we aimed to get from the starting point of an area to a seemingly unreachable exit by coordinating the talents of Glo & Bulder. When Glo walked past a stalagmite, her light cast shadows and lit the facets of the rock in all the ways they would in nature. Through our special abilities we felt like demi-gods, commanding nature to bloom, blossom, shine, and sparkle.īackgrounds felt hand painted and the lighting details added to the artistry of the world’s creation. Pode took place in caves leading to the top of a mountain… but it was far from a dank and dismal place. Could this be the beginning of a beautiful relationship? Bulder loved crystals and they erupted from rock faces as he passed by.Īfter some early success, their hands touched, revealing the slightest spark. Wherever Glo stepped, plants sprung from the earth. Glo and Bulder each had special qualities. He offered to help her get to the top of the highest peak in the land and back into the heavens. She despaired at her fate on Earth until she met a rock named Bulder. Pode began with a star named Glo falling from the sky. The joy of collaborating with your partner to overcome a challenge.Adorable character interactions in an aesthetically lush environment.Patient parents who want to teach their preteens problem-solving.
Pode is best for those who want to see beautiful video game art shine while tackling some mostly-good platform levels in an adorable couch co-op. The diversity of the environments was so impressive that I wished such consistent attention had been put into the puzzles. Some levels garnered a satisfying “aha moment ” others left me with the experience of deja vu. In the end, I helped two elemental beings puzzle their way up a mountain to find their eternal happiness. I turned drab landscapes into verdant gardens. I discovered ancient art embedded in the rock walls and made it glow. Playing Pode felt like walking through a Scandinavian fairy tale. Pode was a gorgeous platform puzzler that never fully matched its beauty with puzzle brilliance. Price: $24.99 on Nintendo eShop REA Reaction Duration: 10-15 hours, 20 hours for completionists
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