One of my favorite genres of video games are 2D and 3D platformers. I enjoy platformers and spend a lot of my gaming time with them. So when I saw a 3D platformer on the Nintendo Switch’s E-Shop for 99 cents, I knew I had to check it out. Toree 3D is a platformer published by Siactro, and released in April of 2021, making it the most recent game I have reviewed. Let’s see if this is worth a hard-earned dollar, and your time.
The story is very simple, it can be summed in one sentence. A creepy man steals Toree’s ice cream, and you have to get it back. You play as Toree through 9 levels. The controls are simple, Toree can jump, and double jump by pushing the B button. He can run by holding the Y, or ZR buttons, and of course, you use the left analog stick to move him, and the right analog stick to move the camera. These controls are very simple to understand and are basic for a game like this.
Now that we have the basic overview information out of the way, what do I think about this game? Before I go into this, let me restate that platformers are my favorite genre of video games. I like a lot of 3D Sonic games, Super Mario Galaxy, and there are countless other 3D platformers I would love to play. When I went into this, I hoped to find a cheap, decent, new 3D platformer, so let’s see if this is the case.
The first thing I have to mention is the visuals of Toree 3D. The game has a bright, appealing, style to it, kind of like a Kirby game, or The Legendary Starfy. The game also looks to be heavily inspired by the Sega Saturn in terms of graphics. The game looks like a mid 90s 3D game, specifically reminding me of how Sonic R looks. The game also presents itself greatly in the audio department, especially when it comes to the music. Toree 3D only has a handful of stage themes due to there being only nine stages. However, every musical piece in the game is great and fits the stage perfectly. My favorites would have to be the final stage theme, and the music to the two levels set in a harbor.
Now let’s talk about the gameplay. The first thing I was worried about is the fact that this game uses a run button to move faster instead of natural alteration, or pushing down the left analog stick trigger. The only other 3D platformer that I can think of that uses a run button is Super Mario 64 DS, which I hear people are very mixed on the use of it in that game. Toree 3D is made around the use of the run button, so it doesn’t feel awkward. The only other immediate control issue I can think of is manual camera controls. It does work, but it can lead to awkward camera angles. Now, the normal solution is to just move the camera to make it fine again, but there’s one part of this game I haven’t mentioned yet. The game is supposed to be played as fast as possible. You can play the level for as long as you need to, and you have infinite lives, so you can’t get a game over, but the game has a ranking system, and it does unlock something. The ranking system requires the player to run through a level quickly if they want to get an A rank. This means very little time to get the camera to an angle where you can see what you are doing, which means you either have to play the level at bad angles or lose time by fixing the angle. The ranking system is very strict and is easily the hardest part of this game. I can’t even get an A, and I don’t think I’m that bad at the game. I wouldn’t have much of an issue with it if it wasn’t used to unlock one of the two secret characters. The fact that you have to do it to unlock something hits the wrong way.
There is one other gameplay aspect that I need to mention. On every level, there are stars you can collect. Collecting all of them will unlock the other secret character. This is pretty easy to do, and honestly, the entire game is pretty easy to beat on its own. Due to the game being easy, anyone can get into it, but it does make the difficulty spike of the ranking system much more noticeable.
Toree 3D is a game that brought me back to simpler times. The graphics bring me back to early Sega Saturn, and Playstation One 3D polygons. The gameplay reminds me of an early 3D platformer, something like Sonic Adventure. I really enjoyed my time with this one, and I think anyone can get into it. But I got to make a stronger recommendation towards a certain group of people, the speedrunners. With the strict ranking system and the fact that this game is super short, it's a perfect game to speedrun. In fact, some speedrunners have already caught on to this game, and have done impressive stuff with it. This game isn’t special, but not all games are meant to be something game-changing to the genre. Toree 3D is a good game, and for 99 cents, I think any fan of platformers should try it out
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