#splashteam

My brother recommended this to me; it seemingly is composed of flavours I love. A classic-style 3D platformer with bonus Pikmin influences, set in a house seen from bug size... the protagonist is even named Milo, just like me! It’s from a small French team co-led by an ex-Ubisofter who worked on the best Rabbid and Rayman games, so I was bought in on the development side as well. As it turns out, he was spot on and indeed I loved it!

The “2D characters in a 3D world” isn’t something that always gels with me, it seems jarring. Each of the styles is very nice though, the house stuffed with objects frozen in time from the 90s and modified into cozy living spaces for the population of evolved bugs, the bugs themselves surprisingly adorable. There’s scads of them around to chat to and receive tasks from, and they make the various rooms feel very lived in, with the divisions in this new society evident and ripe for social commentary (and pop culture references).

The living room is home to a makeshift temple in worship of the house’s departed human inhabitant, the kitchen converted into sponge-laden farmlands, the child’s bedroom an amusement park. Everyday items all have new purposes both for the insectoid inhabitants and for Milo to platform over and around. All six of these worlds are stuffed full of collectibles to grab and charm in equal measure.

Getting around is always fun thanks to Milo’s bubble-based glide ability and his “soapboard”, a slippery sliver of soap that he can whip out any time for some speed or to grind on edges and strings. Not to mention that if you ever fall too far or run into the few hazards, respawning is instant, nearby, and penalty-free. Then there’s the Tinykin of course! This is where the Pikmin comparisons come in.

These miniscule creatures are scattered around like other collectibles, and their colour indicates the ability they lend you. Pink ones carry objects, red ones can blow up certain obstructions, yellow make bridges, blue can convey electricity to power gigantic appliances. The ones that help you get around most are green, which can build ladders anywhere with a touch of a button to help you ascend these intricate macro-spaces.

Make no mistake, the genre here is still a chill 3D platformer; there’s no strategy elements of babysitting your accident-prone wards, battling native creatures, or worrying over growth and casualties. Your Tinykin buddies are instantly at your side at all times and merely used for accumulating new options to solve puzzles and problems within the current room. This suited me perfectly, they took the parts of Pikmin that feel fun and left out the stressful stuff which was just what I needed.