Game: This Means Warp
Genre: Arcade, Strategy, Multiplayer, Party
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam (Windows), Xbox and PS5)
Developer|Publisher: Outlier Games | Jagex
Age Rating: EU 3 | US Everyone
Price: US $19.99 | UK £15.98 | EU €19,99
Release Date: November 30th, 2023
Review code provided with many thanks to Press Engine.
This Means Warp, a Fun Arcade Co-op Game
This Means Warp is an arcade-style co-op game where you fly around in your spaceship, taking on enemy ships and attempting not to get blown up in the process. I covered the game some time ago in Early Access on PC, and since then, it has reached its full release. But you can’t keep a good game contained just on PC, especially a co-op game. There has to be the inevitable Nintendo Switch release so that loved ones have the opportunity to prop the Switch up on a table and enjoy the game in a shed. Why I decided to go with shed I’m not too sure, I guess I thought the chances of people playing this game in an actual spaceship were rather slim. But what do I know?
What’s even more appealing about This Means Warp is that it is one of the rarer examples of this style of game that can be enjoyed by single players just as much as with other human beings or aliens. You never know, the first thing an extraterrestrial wants to do when visiting Earth is to sit down and play some Nintendo Switch in your shed. Anyway, on with the review.
Light on Plot, Straight to the Action
The game is light on plot, launching you almost instantly into the gameplay. When you begin a run you watch a planet get destroyed by some nasty aliens known as the Norg. As part of the federation of good guys, including two humans, a bird and a crocodile, you are sent on a mission to take on the mothership and save the galaxy. Of course, the mission won’t be that easy. You have to take on several pirate spaceships in combat as well as survive all the other threats in space, including flying too close to the sun.
Before you begin a run This Means Warp, you must decide something very important. And that is the name of the ship. For most of my runs, I went with the OtterPrise or Buzzsaw Approved. If you’re familiar with my platformer reviews, you will know why I often choose the latter. After that, you can choose your scenario, difficulty and crew mate. Each starting character has unique stats tailored to attack, speed and repair speed but these can be increased through the run. A run then begins with a simple and to-the-point tutorial which manages to successfully explain the basics of the game without feeling overbearing for newbies, just what you want for a game night game.
Into Space
Then it’s off to space. You go through a randomly generated map flying into squares on a board. Some of these squares will reward you with loot to upgrade your ship and possibly a new crewmate. But most have you take on an enemy ship. The game aims to attack enemy ships while keeping your own ship in one piece. You start out with two laser weapons on either side of the ship but can swap out new ones as the game progresses. These weapons can be charged and strategically fired at specific points on the enemy ship. Keeping your eyes peeled is the key to success. You can take out the enemy weapons to delay them returning fire. If you’re really sneaky, you can wear a wall down and then blast it open, sending the enemies out into the cold vacuum of space. Don’t worry; they respawn after a time. I swear this game is family-friendly, though this might not read like that.
Defensive systems can be acquired, like bots to help with repairs and shields, which can be placed at specific parts of your ship. The enemy can, of course, fire on you, damaging your ship. If you’re quick to repair the damage, you can prevent permanent loss of health. But sometimes, you have to weigh up your priorities. This juggling act makes the game quite gripping and exciting each time you take on a run. Once you succeed in an encounter, you can use the downtime to check your systems, reload, and repair. A reward chest tends to give you special nodes to improve the stats of your defence and offence systems, and you can choose how to distribute these.
As it is the roguelike way, you will perish. Between runs, you accumulate experience to unlock new offensive, defence and stat buffs. You can also unlock new starting characters and new scenarios in the campaign to add some extra incentive to try again.
Competent AI
The biggest surprise of This Means Warp is how competent the co-op AI is. AI companions can be obtained in single-player or multiplayer. With a tap of the ‘X’ button, you can individually assign what you want them to focus on, such as reloading and shooting weapons or repairs. If it’s easier you can just hold ‘x’ on a specific terminal to focus just on that task. Either way, when things are hectic, managing your crew is easy.
Regarding repairs, I was quite impressed how the AI often would travel to the higher priority spots rather than just the easy options. With competent AI, it makes the single-player mode just as appealing as playing with friends, though the latter is probably still the reason most people will play this game. Even though human players are more flawed, you just can’t beat playing with loved ones and having a blast, even if a run ends in failure. My main niggle of the game is co-op appears to only allow for online or local play separately and not a combination of the two, which would have been much more preferable.
Keeping Things Simple
Graphics are soft and cartoony. You may be blowing up spaceships and sending poor souls out into the cold embrace of space sometimes, but this does feel suitable for all family members. It’s a friendly design but doesn’t manage to stand out as much as it could have, making it look a lot like other similar games in this genre, including a popular one where you cook various dishes. But its simplicity does work with its gameplay.
Character sprites and important parts of the ships are well-highlighted, making it clear where you are and what you can interact with. I think young folk will really enjoy the various animal crew members you can play as, some of which are unlocked over time. My son happily shouts ‘snap’ at the crocodile. Things get slightly trickier on the small screen in handheld mode. If you do decide to play with others, it’s probably best to go on TV, at least until people get a good feel for This Means Warp. But whichever way you go, the performance was solid in both modes. The soundtrack is okay, but nothing stands out.
Conclusion: Well Worth A Warp
Whether you choose to go it alone or have a space-themed game night game with friends, This Means Warp is a solid arcade experience. Graphics may not seem like a lot, but the gameplay more than makes up for it. Easy to pick up, very tough to master and even more tough not to be tempted to come back in for another round. My only notable niggle is that you can’t mix local and online co-op, which is a bit of a pain when you want to play the game with your wife and a friend in another country. Regardless, This Means Warp is one of those co-op games that does its own thing and succeeds in the process.
Final Verdict: I Like it a Lot
