Monster Prom: XXL Review (Nintendo Switch)

Game: Monster Prom: XXL
Genre: Simulation, Role-Playing, Party, Multiplayer
System: Switch (originally on PC)
Developers | Publishers: Beautiful Glitch | Those Awesome Guys
Price: USD $15.99 |UK £13.99  EU € 15,99 
Age Rating: US M | EU 16+
Release Date: May 21st 2020

Review code provided with many thanks to Those Awesome Guys!

Have you ever imagined you were a monster trying to get a date to the prom? Me neither, but there is a video game for everything and now there’s one for taking your favorite monster to your prom. So how is it? Let’s find out!

What is it?

Monster Prom: XXL LadiesGamers.com [Poltergeist and computer characters. Poltergeist character is making a Narnia reference.]The references in this game are plentiful. Read on if that’s your type of fun.

Monster Prom: XXL is a dating sim designed to be played in one sitting. There’s (roughly) thirty minute and one hour versions, but the various multiplayer options change the length of the game accordingly. I won’t lie; this game tripped me up at first. Tripped me up in a good way, because it’s not quite like anything I’ve ever played! Once I got the hang of the short play style I had a good time. 

Gameplay

Monster Prom: XXL LadiesGamers.com [Shows a sort of castle-style building. This is the monster's high school.]Decide how to spend your school days. Make them count!

You choose one of four characters and select your name and gender (“They” is an option!). You then take a ridiculous teen magazine style quiz that sets the beginning stats for your character and clues you in to which of your monstrous classmates would be the most ideal potential matches. Now that you know who might be inclined to go to the prom with you, you proceed to organizing your school days around the goal of raising your stats and impressing them. How many weeks of game time you get to woo your potential date depends on the length of the game selected and the number of people playing. At the end of each game you ask your monster crush to the prom. Will they say yes? You’ll just have to play to find out!

Don’t be fooled by the cutesy graphics. This game is not for kids.

Each weekday is divided into three segments. Your school is a castle style building with multiple places to visit. You get to choose one location in the morning, go to lunch, and then go somewhere else for the evening. Each location levels up a different set of points, except for the library where you acquire money for the shop instead. 

Monster Prom:XXL LadiesGamers.com [A set up of lunch tables. You pick who you're going to eat with today.] Choose a table, any table. But strategy would dictate you pick the one your crush is at.

When you choose a location there’s a bit of story that explains which set of points are leveled up and why. The game then proceeds to a short choose your answer section that lets you try to impress your future date. Lunch is always in the cafeteria, but you choose which table to sit at.

Control Issues, Music, Game Oddities, and Bonus Content. Oh My!

No control issues. It works exactly as you’d expect. You can use the touch screen, but the signs for selecting where to go are pretty small so it’s not recommended.

I turned the music off. It is far too repetitive for my taste. 

The one oddity in this game is the merchant who visits a random place in the school on most weekdays. Character use of purchased items appears to be automated. I couldn’t really find any rhyme or reason to it personally, but the items themselves range from gross to hilarious.

This game has hundreds of possible endings to unlock, and several other goodies besides. They’ve included some fandom created content galleries, including fan art and fan created monsters.

Multiplayer

The multiplayer options are extensive, with pass and play options for up to four people, and internet online play besides.

Monster Prom:XXL LadiesGamers.com [Challenge example, This one has you argue about different potential movie fandoms.]The challenges had some pretty silly questions!

The pass and play adds a turn order challenge and a weekend scene. For the turn order challenge, it will ask you something silly and then ask you to argue about your answers. If you want to move through more quickly, there’s also a dice roll option. The questions were mostly funny, but a few were raunchy and at least one was mildly disturbing. This is a multiplayer game that you definitely want to play with a very specific group of friends that are open to some questionable and offbeat humor.

Monster Prom:XXL LadiesGamers.com [Weekend segment. Here you get a chance to mess up your opponent's chances with their crush.]Make your opponent look good? Or nah?

The weekend day gives one player the option to try and bad mouth their opponent to that opponent’s potential date and earn some points in the process. The player is randomly chosen and the weekend scenes are not part of the single player option. 

I was unable to try the online version as it has no lobby. Instead, you set up a game and add players via a code. I don’t know anyone else with this game, so the online option remains untested by this reviewer.

Characters

Monster Prom:XXL LadiesGamers.com [Poltergeist and vampire. They're making a Veggie Tales reference.]I was floored to see this Veggie Tales reference!

I think the game shines here. The characters and their reference heavy dialogue make for a hilarious set of stories. My favorite characters to romance have to be the library computer turned sentient student, the hipster vampire, and the fanfic-obsessed eldritch horror. Other students I liked include a poltergeist and a werewolf.

The characters in play depend on whether you choose the original game or the DLC. The DLC is included in the Switch port.

Monster Prom:XXL LadiesGamers.com [A photo of your classmates. This is from before the game begins.]Your class!

The characters are all over 18, so in some ways this high school feels more like a fantasy version of college with a prom. It’s silly, but fun.

Conclusion

Monster Prom:XXL LadiesGamers.com [Mer-princess and computer. They're discussing ways to torment someone with glitter.]SHE ISN’T WRONG. Glitter is EVIL.

This game is catty; risqué, full of fun pop culture references, has some seriously disturbing humor at times, and is packed with paranormal high school weirdness and bad behavior. The characters you interact with are wacky and occasionally fourth wall breaking. I found this game to be quite the guilty pleasure. The big drawback for me is that it’s played in short blocks of time that you can’t save. The thirty minute to an hour window needed to play a single game is a deterrent in some situations.

If you, like me, enjoy a bit of paranormal silliness around Halloween give this one a look!

Final Verdict: I like it

Ladiesgamers.com

 

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