My Friend Peppa Pig Review

Game: My Friend Peppa Pig
Genre: Adventure
System: Nintendo Switch (also on PC, PS4 & Xbox)
Developer|Publisher: Petoons Studio | Outright Games
Age Rating: EU 3+ | US Everyone
Price: US $39,99 | UK £34.99 | EU € 39,99
Release Date: October 22nd, 2021

Review code provided with many thanks to Swipe Right

Peppa Pig is a phenomenon with young children across the globe. Now, my own daughter is well beyond the age of watching shows like My Friend Peppa Pig, so I haven’t had the pleasure of watching it myself. As a parent, I stem from the days of the Tellytubbies and Postman Pat, so I know that though as an adult you wouldn’t expect it to, some characters can be a real hit with young kids. Despite the fact that they are a pink pig drawn in 2D with eyes that both look front and a chirpy voice.

So for this review of My Friend Peppa Pig, I’ll tell you upfront: if you aren’t currently deep into the parenthood of a toddler or pre-schoolers, then it’s best to move to other reviews on our site. But if you are, and it’s your job to make sure your little boy or girl enjoys the first steps into playing a video game then read on.

Peppa Pig’s New Best Friend

Peppa was jumping for joy when I started the game, she couldn’t wait to play together as I was going to be Peppa’s new best friend. First, though, I could customise my character. Quite a nice set of customisations too, letting you choose what kind of animal you want to be. There are multiple colors, hats, glasses and colors of clothing to choose from. Once that’s done you’re off, and the narrator in the game shows you the ropes to proceed. All that needs to be done is to press a button, so it’s easy enough for young children.

My Friend Peppa Pig is a sandbox game in 2D where it’s up to your child what it wants to do. Of course, you start by meeting Peppa, but after that, you’re free to go where you want. It’s always going left and right though, going from one location to another. Locations that I’m sure children will recognise from the show. In each location, there are activities to be done. Like playing with the toys in Peppa’s bedroom, finding Daddy Pigs glasses in the house, going to the beach and catching grandma’s chickens.

Exploring Peppa’s World

The activities that can be done will surely delight children. As a mom, I was never much good at letting my daughter romp around muddy puddles. With Peppa, though I enjoyed it: she and I jumped around and got mud all over us. Just for the fun of it (and I didn’t have to wash their clothes!). That’s what I kept in mind when playing My Friend Peppa Pig: it all seemed relatively simple gameplay but it sets out to do what it aims to.

I’m pretty sure that for children it must be like being a part of their favourite show. I’d say this is more like a toy for them. I don’t feel it has a lot of educational value, but maybe it doesn’t have to. Being used to shows like Sesame Street I had expected some mini-games to teach some counting or memorising. But as Peppa’s friend, I did see all kinds of locations and meet many animals. Exploration is key here.

We went to the Beach, Granny & Grandpa’s House, the Forest, Windy Castle, the Museum and more. Visiting those places multiple times meant I watched the same segments over and over again. Unfortunately, there’s no way to skip them. But then, I don’t think the young ones will mind in the slightest. I mean, I can’t count the times that I watched the Tellytubbies do the same things and still it delighted my daughter.

Parental Controls Included

The graphics look cute and though there isn’t much in the way of controls, it does the job. After all, this game can be played by very young children, so intricate controls have no place here. Everything is voice acted, and a narrator repeats every instruction on the screen.

I like how My Friend Peppa Pig pays attention to details. There is, of course, a chest in the room with dress-up clothes for you to try on, but when you leave the house you’re back in your own attire. At the beach, we of course donned our bathing suits. Turning on the tv in Peppa’s parent’s house shows a real tv show on. I can imagine your child will really feel a part of Peppa’s world. One niggle I have is that the loading screens are very long on the Switch version. Young ones might get distracted and turn from the game.

The game has parental controls, allowing you to limit how long your child can play the game during each session. By default, this feature sets to 20 minutes, but you can choose between 5 and 15 minutes instead. There’s also a “0” minute setting, which seems to be the “off” setting for the parental controls. When the time limit is up, Peppa’s parents will bring you and Peppa back to Peppa’s house for a sleepover. After Peppa and the player’s character go to sleep, the game zooms into Peppa’s window, looking out at the night sky. That’s time’s up!

Conclusion

My Friend Peppa Pig is aimed at very young children, and I would imagine it will be huge fun for them to be a part of Peppa’s world. The gameplay is simple, so you can even let your youngest play the game alone, they only need to press one button. However, playing this together will surely delight your child and make for some good quality time.

If this game was aimed at a slightly higher age group, I would say that it gets repetitive and you can’t skip scenes you have seen before. Combined with the price point it might not be a good choice for children age 6+. But seeing familiar faces and places from the popular TV show is key here, as is the exploration and being a part of it. So if you have a huge Peppa fan in your home, My Friend Peppa Pig will be a good present for the upcoming holidays.

Final Verdict: I Like It