Ruffy and the Riverside Review – An Analysis

Okay, so picture this: there’s this game called Ruffy and the Riverside. Not something you’d hear every day, right? It’s all 3D and open-world-ish, kinda like you’re thrown into this land of endless puzzles and stuff to find. Ruffy, the bear who’s a dead ringer for an ewok from Star Wars — odd but true — can tweak his surroundings. Cool, huh? But let’s not sugarcoat it, some bits are clunky and might just make you want to pull your hair out.

So, what’s going on in this world, you ask? Well, everything’s on the brink of chaos thanks to this creepy cube menace. Ruffy’s the reluctant hero, of course, tasked with piecing together some magical letters to save his home turf. Think Super Mario 64, you know—hub world with little offshoot areas. Oh, and those darn ladders. Like, seriously, you’ve gotta climb them straight on, or you’re going tumbling. I mean, why?

Then there’s Ruffy’s nifty trick, like swapping materials around. It’s all a bit of magic, absorbing stuff and then bam—swapped for something else. It’s satisfying when the puzzle pieces actually click, but man, do you stumble a lot. Sometimes I was just smashing everything in sight till something happened. Maybe it makes sense to you. Or maybe not. Takes a certain mindset, I guess.

Now, let’s talk controls. Ruffy’s fast, but ask him to tiptoe—it’s like asking a toddler to walk in a straight line. It gets old fast when checkpoints send you on a repetitive loop of “oops, died again.” Coins? Yeah, you grab those for stuff like heart boosts and costumes. But here’s a hack: splurge on puzzle solutions and save yourself some grief.

Oh, speaking of puzzles, they’re, um, quirky. Imagine swapping waterfall water for leaves or turning stone to wood so stuff floats. Ingenious? Kind of. Until you’ve done the same mind-numbing puzzle too many times in a row. Come on, give us a break!

The tunes and sounds? Lighthearted, fun, very Ruffy-esque. Visuals have this hand-drawn vibe, bright and vibrant. It’s got comedy sprinkled in, but that intro drags a bit. Trim it down, please!

Ruffy and the Riverside might wobble a bit with quirks and odd repetitive bits, but honestly, it’s got this quirky charm. Tried it on Switch 2—pretty smooth. Tons of stuff for the hardcore fans to uncover. Despite the occasional head-scratcher of a puzzle, that swapping twist keeps it fresh. Yeah, it’s got its rough patches, but hey, still a place worth exploring with Ruffy.