Toki Tori (Nintendo Switch) Review

Some Nintendo Switch owners will have only found out about Two Tribes' Toki Tori - the company's furry little chicken mascot - through his starring role in the fantastic updated version of a classic puzzle adventure, Toki Tori 2+. Just as Image & Form did following SteamWorld Dig 2, though, bringing first SteamWorld Heist and then the first SteamWorld Dig, now it is time for the first outing to make an appearance, in its remade form, and shine on the Switch eShop… and it definitely deserves to be experienced by a much larger audience!

Forget almost everything you know about Toki Tori, though, other than the fact that he is a little yellow chicken going on an adventure. Those that lapped up the sequel lately will be in for a shock here, since here Toki Tori is barely like the second game. That focused on just walking, stomping the ground and whistling, whereas in this original title he can actually use various items, albeit each in limited supply. Also, rather than roaming the land on missions, returning to uncover new hidden treats further into the adventure, instead here he must simply wander back and forth, and collect a set number of eggs in self-contained stages, all of varying theme (thankfully, not against the clock…).

Need to build platforms, create stepping-stones, warp to a nearby location, relocate heavy blocks, float around in a bubble underwater or even hide from enemies behind a…shower curtain? You got it! Toki Tori has a wealth of different abilities to hand to help him navigate the intricately crafted levels across a forest setting, then into a castle, down into the sewers, and even into the watery depths. A limited supply of certain items and abilities is granted per stage, so careful planning is needed throughout.

Messed up at some point on the road to collecting Toki Tori's un-hatched brethren, though? Never fear! Rather like the whistling technique that restored the little chick back to the previous checkpoint in the sequel, here there is something even better - a rewind function, which comes in extremely handy on so many occasions, as well as a fast-forward button, in case you flick back a bit too far. As with Toki Tori 2+, the further into the game you get, the more ruthless it becomes, and not only is careful navigation of the stages required, but even the movements of enemies becomes a necessity. That rewind feature will indeed be used frequently…

Ten normal stages are available per world, then a set of harder levels unlock, followed by some bonus ones, and the pattern continues until the end, with a special 'Test Lab' world being unleashed for those that want to squeeze more juice out of this delicious offering. This may not be updated from the remade PC edition, but the additions made to that were so fantastic in the first place and still make this puzzler truly superb today, yet there is the downside of touch controls no longer being available, something that is hoped will be patched in eventually after being present in the Wii U release. Best of all, though, all of this amazing content comes in at less than £5! Sure, it may be cheaper on Wii U right now (less than £2), but for those that skipped that system, this is something that definitely should not be overlooked.