Overall Puddle Knights was a blast to playthrough. For fans of the original, Puddle Knights on the switch does not disappoint. For new players, it is a must-have if you are into puzzle games. It provides an excellent amount of challenge without much frustration.
Puddle Knights by Lockpickle is one of the most unique puzzle games I have run across in some time. It provides an excellent challenge without being overly complicated. Sometimes simplicity has its drawbacks. Let’s jump right into things.
The overall goal of Puddle Knight is to escort a royal figure from point A to point B without stepping in the mud. It is the Puddle Knight’s job to use their cape to block off the mud so the royal figure can cross without having to dirty their clothes. Sounds easy enough, but there is more to it than that. The Knight cannot move backwards if its cape is still attached, nor can they move if someone is standing on the cape either. The player must figure out new and innovative ways to finish the puzzle without getting mud on the royal figure. That one goal plays into a series of puzzles with all sorts of ways to get mud on said princess.
Each world is unique and provides a new set of rules that are puzzle-driven that the player must traverse and figure out in addition to the previously mentioned mud rule. World One teaches the player the basics of how the game is played and what to watch out for when trying to solve puzzles. There is some challenge to it but by and large, it’s a much nicer start to the next one hundred and twenty-nine levels. From then on each world adds a new aspect that the player needs to remember. For example, in one world there are two knights on the field if one of the two knights stands on the other’s cape, and there is a very real chance that will be the case, the other one could move away leaving a piece of their cape in the mud. This in turn creates a permanent spot in which the princess may stand on, which violates the mud rule.
As the player progresses further in Puddle Knights, they will start to be introduced to new mechanics to the game. Bridges that can only be pushed by the knights that will go back up if there is nothing on top of it, escorts that follow the royals around making it difficult to move around, and so much more. Each world has its own gimmick. From tearing away pieces of the knight’s capes to stages having 3D platforms that require the player to use their heads to get across. Throughout the adventure, each one of these mechanics will be included in later levels from the ones they were introduced from. What that means is that everything that was introduced from past worlds has a chance of reappearing in the later worlds. The player never knows when the mechanics from the past worlds will reappear so it is best to know the ins and outs of each mechanic. Usually in video games, once the player gets past something in a dungeon or a stage, it goes directly into the void never to be seen again. On the other hand Puddle Knights does a great job reincorporate its old ideas into new stages making them feel fresh and unique. There isn’t a stage in the game that doesn’t have its own charm and originality.
Keep in mind, Puddle Knights is a puzzle game and will provide the player with many, many headaches as they progress in the game. Puddle Knights like most games gets harder and more complex as the player progresses in the game. The game provides a good challenge and keeps the player on their toes. Is there a chance you can be stuck in a stage for an embarrassing amount of time? Yes. Will the feeling be better when everything starts to click and gets you into the goal? Yes. Will you get stuck in 1-5: Unexpected Turns because you didn’t realize you had to make an UNEXPECTED TURN to complete the level? Probably not but that is beside the point. The challenge in Puddle Knight will continue to blow the player away and feel more satisfying once you complete them. The puzzles are all unique and completely change the play style needed to make it to the goal.
The music in the game is meant to relax the player. Each world has a different track to play along each stage. The music is soothing and calm but listening to the same track for hours on repeat starts to get stale and sometimes a little irritating. This is not meant to say the music is bad, not by a long shot. At first, the music’s role is to calm the player and help them see the puzzle with objective eyes. After you have heard the same jiggle on repeat a hundred times, it starts to feel annoying and a little condescending as the player struggles to figure out the puzzle. Granted each stage could at minimum take two minutes to complete, so there isn’t a point to make it too long and complex, but in my opinion, the music is the weakest part of the game.
Overall Puddle Knights was a blast to playthrough. For fans of the original, Puddle Knights on the switch does not disappoint. For new players, it is a must-have if you are into puzzle games. It provides an excellent amount of challenge without much frustration.
