Game: A Monster’s Expedition
Genre: Puzzle, Adventure, Other
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam, Apple Arcade)
Developers | Publishers: Draknek & Friends | Draknek
Age Rating: US E | EU 3+
Price: UK £15.09 | US $19.99 | EU € 16,79
Release Date: August 5th, 2021
Review code used, with many thanks to Future Friends PR
Developers Draknek has had a few successes with their previous games, A Good Snowman is Hard to Build and Cosmic Express. Draknek are back again with A Monster’s Expedition a gem of a puzzle game featuring the monster character from the snowman game.
The Monster and the Logs
You control the little monster as he explores a sprawling land that spans hundreds of islands. The islands are grouped in archipelagoes and surrounded by mist. Every so often the monster will come across an object on a plinth with a little item description written on the plaque on the plinth. You see, the monster is taking a trip through an open-air museum. He is on an expedition to discover “humanity” from the long-forgotten mythical humans that inhabited Englandland.
Roll the Logs
On each island there are a few trees and a rock or two. So the basic idea of the game is to push trees in a way that they make connections to other islands by forming bridges or making rafts in the latter levels. Thus allowing the monster to reach more and more of the islands and make his way around the museum.
At first, this is as simple as pushing one log over to fill in a small gap in the water between islands. Initially, it’s small logs you’ll be dealing with, which once pushed over you can roll, but they will roll clean off the side of the island if not blocked. You can also flip the log end to end if you come at them from the right side.
Make Bridges and Rafts
A Monster’s Expedition is based around a grid, even though it is not visible. Once you knock over a log you can walk on the tree stumps and onto the wood of the tree you have knocked over. By pushing a log in a way that it would roll in real life, it will result in the log rolling until it hits an object or the water, whichever comes first.
Often, if it hits the water in the wrong direction, you’ll need to undo those moves and try again. Developers Draknek has thought this through well and included the option at the press of a button you can undo a move, to move back a step. Or if you’re really stumped you can re-set the entire island that you are on, setting it back to its original state.
More Complex
It gets slightly more complex in later levels with longer logs to manipulate but it is never too complex that it drives you to pull your hair out. A Monster’s Expedition doesn’t have a linear path forward through the island, instead, it often branches off and circles back around, so if you get stuck, you can just make your way to another area and solve the puzzles there.
I find this option to be relaxing within puzzle games, instead of trying the same puzzle, over and over, and failing. I can take a break and make my way to a new area for some more puzzling with a fresh frame of mind.
The Museum
The puzzling is broken up nicely by the islands that play host to museum exhibits perched on plinths. These all have little bits of information, which are often humorous to read, about human history. explained through a monster’s perspective.
Such as the Human Storage Rack, with hooked protrusions that suggests it performed a similar function to the familiar human coat rack. However, instead of collecting coats, it allowed users to store multiple humans without them getting crumpled or wrinkled. I love reading these odd little pockets of information, you always discover something new about this weird race of humans from EnglandLand.
Clever Game
This is an incredibly clever open-world log-pushing puzzle game. It is also a game that gets an astonishing amount of variety out of just a handful of unique elements arranged on tiny islands. Simple and consistent mechanics play out throughout this open-world puzzle game. The game is so well designed that you want to keep playing to discover and explore more of it.
Humour, Looks and Sound
The writing on the plinths is delightful and often amusing. It made me smile on more than one occasion while playing the game. I don’t think I’ve played a puzzle game with as many levels as A Monster’s Expedition has, for a puzzle game it’s massive. It’s quite deceiving in a way, but in a good way, since the map is covered in fog you think you are nearly at the end of the game until the fog pulls back to reveal more puzzling goodness. The music and sound effects in the game just add to the whole experience.
The game looks gorgeous and as you move through the islands the seasons and climates change. This adds another element of surprise. Islands that look summery, to spring with cherry blossom trees and even into winter with snow on the ground. Controls are joy-con or touchscreen and either way both work equally well.
Conclusion
A Monster’s Expedition is a delight to play. The solution to some of the puzzles might not click right away. However, when you do find it, it comes with such a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment that it’s hard to describe. A game filled with lots of a-ha moments when the solution pops into your head.
This is a must-play game for puzzle fans. A Monster’s Expedition is one of the best puzzle games I’ve played this year. I definitely recommend exploring the open-world museum of EnglandLand!
Final Verdict: A well deserved Two Thumbs Up
