Game: Sleep Tight
System: Nintendo Switch
Developer/ Publisher: We are Fuzzy
Price: £11.54|$14.99|€ 12,99
Rating: EU 7|America E10+
Release Date: 24th January 2019 (EU) / July 26th 2018 (US)
Also available on: Steam
After the Sun sets, the moon shines in the night sky, and instead of being wrapped up in their snuggly beds, children are armed with firearms and barricading themselves behind sofas. You see, monsters are real! They lurk under our children’s beds, hide within their wardrobes, and they’re waiting for the right time to pounce. Children have known this for centuries, and have lived in fear, that is until now!
The Fight Back is on
Sleep Tight is a twin based shooter that pits children against hoards of monsters on a nightly basis. But be warned, each night the hoards return, with a few new additions, and a slightly higher difficulty level. To survive, targeted children must use daytime to stock up on health, ammo, as well as research new weapons, powerups, and construct, strengthen, and fix protective walls which consist of sofa’s, chairs, pillows, tables etc.
Daft Parents, of course, are oblivious to all this. Not only have we denied the existence of monsters, but we’re also unaware of the extremes kids goto in an attempt to save themselves. How dumb I’ve been! There’s logic to a messy bedroom after all.
Deeper than you may imagine
Sleep Tight is more than a few kids unleashing havoc upon hoards of nightmarish creatures. A gung ho mentality will help you to survive a few nights, but without investing suns and stars into research, ammo and power-ups, you’ll soon become a meat feast.
The game’s primary achievement is unlocking new characters. I find it helpful to target some characters I’d like to unlock and implement a tactical approach. Some will require a more offensive approach, so putting research into increased power-ups, ammo and weapons are essential. If on the other hand, you want to achieve the goal of surviving eight nights without shooting, you’ll need to adopt a more defensive approach.
My favourite tactic is to start increasing suns, stars, health and the efficiency of ammo. Other useful upgrades include the ability to improve an item’s durability but decrease its overall cost.
Playing with each newly unlocked character also demands a new tactical approach. The default character Joe can enjoy relative success by standing in a corner without little cover (hence very easy mode), whereas others like Lynn (Normal mode), face a tougher time and need greater protection.
Suitable for Children
The theme touches upon something that all children can relate too. The game visually is reminiscent of a highly popular Disney movie franchise, and even though monsters present a threat to the game’s protagonists, there’s nothing remotely scary or unsuitable about Sleep Tight. Since obtaining the review code, my children have played it and still continue to have fun with it. My eldest son, in particular, has fun trying to build his own bases, filling them with turrets. Concerning difficulty, my sons struggle to get past night 10, but that doesn’t stop them from wanting to play.
Steam vs Switch
Our previous review was based on the Steam version of the game. I can’t comment about differences regarding visuals or how the game runs on both systems, but I can highly recommend the Switch version for the portability aspect alone. The console’s sleep mode, as well as the game’s ability to keep checkpoints, means gamers can enjoy quick play sessions, without having to play for long periods.
Sadly, the Switch version does lack online leaderboards which will be a big disappointment to more competitive gamers.
My only issue
Oh if only this game supported multiplayer. There’s probably not enough screen area for 4 players, but even a two-player option would suffice. My son’s first question was, “can we play together?” Sadly the answer is no. I would have loved to stand side by side with my sons ready to face the monstrous hoard. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.
I hope that a patch or a future sequel will incorporate multiplayer support.
Overall
I like Sleep Tight a lot. It’s a fun shooter which can be enjoyed by all ages but also by the more serious player. It presents a scenario which parents and children of every generation can relate too, and I’m so glad it’s finally available for Switch owners in Europe.
Our previous Steam review can be read by clicking here.
