Got a Switch? You're one Lucky gamer!
What do you get when you cross a fox, a bunch of kitties, some taking rocks, and a magical self-help book?
This game.
Don’t like nightmare fuel? Does strategy give you a headache? Hate dying because enemies won’t give you elbow room? Admit it, you just want to play a game that is as simple as having your favorite bag of chips.
I got my bag of chips playing New Super Lucky’s Tale.
About New Super Lucky’s Tale
Love animals and all things cute? This will be your new obsession. Made specially for the Switch console, it is an action/adventure platform game. You get to explore different worlds. And fight hilariously chaotic antagonists.
Who do you play? An adorable fox that gives Mickey Mouse a run for his money.
Released by Playful Studios on November 8, 2019, the public response was mostly positive. Players find it a love letter to 90s retro platform gaming. Some find it too easy. Others see it as “nice and simple”.
Fans of Mario, Crash Bandicoot, and even Banjo Kazooie agree that this game is fun. And like them, the nature of New Super Lucky’s Tale is just as addicting! New Super Lucky’s Tale continues to be fun. Even after releasing five months ago, it remains a gem in the gaming community.
New Super Lucky's Tale Story
Book: It serves as the portal that takes Lucky to different worlds. The more places explored, the more pages are added.
In New Super Lucky’s Tale, you play as kid fox Lucky. You travel amazing worlds in order to reclaim lost pages. Along the way you have to fight evil sorcerer Jinx and his Kitty Litter kids.
Interesting story. I was first taken in by the simple yet cute designs. A game with world-travelling and cute animals already catches my attention. Crazy bad guy obsessed with power? Seen it. Who’s also a doting dad to some crazy kids? Love the idea. I do wish there was more to the introduction. Based on 2D cutscenes, we only have a general knowledge of what happened. But we are never given answers to why it happened. During the loading parts of the game, Lucky’s golem friend teases us with random information. One of those loading moments has him mention Lucky’s dad being best friends with Jinx before the latter turned evil. At least we get a reason why Bowser kidnaps Peach. I wish this game would give us more insight about how these characters came to be. The whole story is good, but I feel like it’s fast-paced.
New Super Lucky’s Tale Gameplay
Every world you visit looks crazy. Each one with its own unique set of NPCs. Did I also mention the NPCs communicate with you in what sounds like ‘Pokemon speak’? Played games with redneck earthworms? Mailman golems? Or even carnival-loving ghosts?
The friends and allies Lucky makes are interesting. On the surface, it looks weird with all these random characters/species. But looking deeper, you’re reconnecting lost civilizations. The Kitty Litter takes most of the credit. Each of their personalities fit into the challenges. There’s a scientific feline who’s planning to dominate agriculture with robotics. A sassy kitty who wants to overthrow an entire beach with her music. And there’s the self-proclaimed ‘ninja warrior’ with cheesy dialogue that makes you laugh. Like collecting coins, but without the frustration of a Super Mario Bros level? This game is your bag of chips. And where can you use those coins? At Geovanni’s fashion boutique. While Lucky may be your only playable character, you get to customize him. For every 700 coins, you can buy him a number of outfits. Continue playing as you dress up. I replay the game just so I can have Lucky explore in a different outfit. I enjoy repeating the experience.
The game is not hard. It’s made with possibly sweet dreams. If there’s anything to improve with the game, there should be more to the levels than getting pages. Don’t get me wrong, it’s fun. But it feels like it got repetitive around the third world. Maybe if the game involved achievement unlocking. Like if one achievement involved taking down twenty enemies in one level. Or if there was another achievement that involved wearing a specific outfit to a level, that would be nice too. I play a lot of app games. If they can feature daily achievements, then platform games should too.
Mario’s jump done right: You must guide Lucky across several obstacles and earn your pages.
New Super Lucky’s Tale Combat
All boss battles
Like Mario’s jump and Crash Bandicoot’s spin, Lucky’s attack is his swinging tail. Not only does it send enemies flying, it’s also used to break stuff and find more coins. Lucky can also ground pound enemies if the tail batting won’t finish them off. Enemies will either charge at you or toss something explosive from a distance. The best thing about Lucky’s swinging tail move is that you can send their attacks right back.
The sounds effects for an enemy defeat couldn’t sound more satisfying. You can either fight your enemies or stay clear of them. But for some levels it is required to defeat them before you can move on.
In Lucky’s case, defeating enemies will earn you another page. Other times it will earn you a letter to spell L-U-C-K-Y. My inner completionist always urges me to finish spelling LUCKY in every level. The victory music brings me back to when I played my first Kirby game. Remember, your tail is your only weapon.
This game doesn’t give you gadgets. And no fireflowers lying around. And don’t forget your lives. Each one has three hearts. Lose them all, and you start from your last checkpoint. Lose all your lives and you will have to restart the level. Don’t get too prideful just because the game is easy. Sometimes you’ll end up losing your hearts before you know it. So if you don’t want to lose your lives instantly, just take your time.
New Super Lucky’s Tale Quest/Mission System
Each world has your friends needing help when the Kitty Litter are nearby. Collect more pages. Battle the bosses. Most of the time you’re focused on finding the letters in L-U-C-K-Y. Getting 300 coins. Or finding that hidden page. Remember the find-and-collect part of this game? Well, in one level, you have to find chickens in order to earn a new page.
Not just find them, you’ll have to tailswipe them straight to their pen. (Yes, you have to smack the chickens until they reluctantly be good little farm animals) Jump. Dig. Destroy property. Consider it practice before facing the boss level. Puzzle solving is also fun. You have to organize statues on the right platform before completing the level. It becomes a tedious process as the game progresses.
Out of all the different levels, solving the puzzles is challenging. I have been stumped at least a couple of times before I had to start over.
Then there’s being put into a hamster ball. Using the analog stick, you have to carefully roll through the dangerous platform while collecting coins. As the game progresses, the platforms and coin-collecting get more complicated. You actually have to jump at one point in order to get a coin. I’ve ended up literally at the edge. I’ve lost more lives that way.
New Super Lucky’s Tale Graphics
First thing to love about the game is the graphics. Colorful. Beautiful. Eye-pleasing. It has that cartoonish feel that reminds you of a Mario or Kirby game. I think the developers were going for a Pixar-esque style. While not realistically animated as Grand Theft Auto, it works. Each of the worlds featured in the game have their own creative twist on reality.
When fighting enemies, Lucky’s footwork and attacks don’t get choppy. Boss battles are almost fluid in animation. With the way this 3D platform game is designed, looking at your surroundings is just as enjoyable as exploring. While Lucky runs, jumps, and digs, you’re able to see him do it all in clean animation. His vibrant design alone is enough to tell you it’s a good game. Characters from each of the worlds you visit are the same.
Small fox, big travel: Each world features levels where Lucky must swipe, jump, dig, and collect.
New Super Lucky’s Tale Developer
Veteran gamers would know that this isn’t the “original” Lucky. Before being Switched, the young fox started out as the same lovable character. But on a different console. Originally titled Lucky’s Tale, it served as an addition to the Oculus Rift VR’s list of games. As soon as Playful Studios (or just Playful) introduced Lucky, fans fell in love. But had issues.
Main thing gamers hated with the original was camera movement. You don’t control the camera. The game does. Virtual reality already causes motion sickness. Try playing the game for an hour and not throw up. Speaking of reality, just using the headset loses your grip on it. Lucky’s reputation didn’t seem like it would go beyond the lenses. But in November 2017, he would be featured in a new gaming platform titled Super Lucky’s Tale. It was made specifically for the Xbox 1 and Windows 10 (you see where we’re going with this title?). Fans were happy to see Lucky again. But was there still a problem? Yes. And it’s the same one. Once again, playing it is like teaching your grandparents how to Skype. Finding coins and hidden locations are frustrating enough. The camera won’t let you pan out to [literally] get the bigger picture. Try fighting one of the main bosses while your visual gets screwed. Camera work may have been the biggest issue. But the glitches were ridiculous. The animation lagged. Sometimes the audio would go on when the game froze. And sometimes the game would just crash.
Around June 2019, Nintendo came out with a trailer for New Super Lucky’s Tale (emphasis on ‘new’). And everyone welcomed Lucky back. The fact that it was going to be a Switch game was what really gave them hope. The Switch is pretty much the most popular console in these modern times. So good move on Nintendo! Playful knew what it was doing when they decided to change consoles. Mistakes were fixed in the New Super Lucky’s Tale.
The camera? Superb. 360 degree movement, so you can finally look from God’s perspective. Those boss battles will be a breeze now. With so many players choosing the Switch, Lucky’s reputation has increased. But, like anything in this world, fans always found something wrong. “It doesn’t look as great as the old one”, some say. I never played the older versions, being introduced to Lucky only last year. But if I had to base off of gameplays from 2017, I see little to no difference except Switch has more colorful graphics. The game is just easy. If you gave a whole day for playtime, it would be done within 6-8 hours. For some people that’s not enough. Completionists spend more time searching for the hidden coins and clovers. When I played the game, it was done faster than when I unboxed it. Around the Foxington bonus, I had hoped there would be more worlds to explore once I was finished. Sadly, all I got was the credits. And then the after-credits scene. Oh, boy, does it make me wish Playful could just give us a sequel already. But fans do agree it has charm. And that charm is worth starting a whole new game. Recently, the game had just celebrated its anniversary on March 28, four years since being introduced to the gaming world. Lucky may have changed, but his fans’ love hasn’t.
New Super Lucky’s Tale Price
The game currently costs $39.99. There are no additional things to pay once it’s bought. If Playful does plan to make a sequel, it’ll be made for Switch. Nintendo has already converted a number of classics for the popular console: Mario, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, and even Kirby.
Now Lucky’s part of that community. FINAL VERDICT: 9/10 Pros
- Unique character designs
- Fun world exploring
- Basic controls
Cons
- Repetitive gameplay
