One thing me and my colleague, Heidi Hawes, share in common is our disdain towards the only Kirby game available on the Switch, Kirby Star Allies. It was voted by us both as one of the worst games from 2018. So far, the Switch doesn’t have a good Kirby game and I have no idea when this sad trend will be reverted. Meanwhile, I guess we’ll have to resort to some small independent games to fill that void. Whipseey and the Lost Atlas, a new little title published by Blowfish Studios, serves this purpose decently enough.

Just look at the handful of pictures in this review. It’s obvious that Whipseey is clearly influenced by Kirby, although it has some unique features to distance itself from its main source of inspiration. The main unique feature is that, well, you don’t play as Kirby or anything that remotely resembles it gameplay-wise. You do control an adorable pink ball with limbs that can hover in the air, but instead of feasting on your enemies and copying their abilities, you have a whip. Imagine if you were playing an entire Kirby game with a whip power-up: that’s basically Whipseey in a nutshell.

This might sound disappointing, but the entire game is built around the whip. Luckily, it won’t bother you that much after a short while. You can use it to defeat enemies, as a helicopter, and a grappling hook. Nothing in this game is complex in any shape or form, but it does feature some occasionally tricky puzzle and platforming sections to spice things up a bit. This is especially nice since the combat is so damn straightforward.

Everything is backed up by decent visuals and a surprisingly catchy soundtrack for a game so cheap. Whipseey doesn’t shy away from its influcenes, with its enemies, levels, animations, and color palettes heavily resembling the ones featured in the SNES Kirby games. There’s even a victory animation really similar to the one Kirby does whenever you defeat a boss. It walks a fine line between “homage” and “ripoff”, but I’d say it gets the job done pretty well.

If I had to point out one big flaw in Whipseey though, that would be its duration. I am well aware this is a very cheap game being sold for way less than ten bucks, but you can beat it in an hour, maybe less if you’re skilled enough. Once you get used to the gameplay and master some of the more challenging platforming sections, Whipseey becomes a cakewalk that can be beaten quickly with little to no replayability. It’s still more challenging than the hand-holding borefest that is Kirby Star Allies though.

Really short duration aside, Whipseey is still a somewhat good addition to your Switch library. It is charming, it looks nice, and it’s got some challenging moments. Just don’t expect anything mindblowing from it, it’s a budget game that isn’t meant to last for long. That still makes it a lot more enjoyable than Kirby Star Allies though, that’s for sure.

 

Graphics: 7.5 Clearly the game’s highlight. It emulates the look and vibe from the Kirby games released on the SNES. The game is colorful, charming, and well-animated. Your main character even does the same victory animation Kirby does whenever he defeats a boss.	Gameplay: 7.0 A really simple control scheme that only uses two buttons to jump and attack. They are responsive enough. The overall gameplay is very straightforward, but there are some instances in which the platforming skills the game demands from you are too precise.
Sound: 7.5 You usually don’t expect for budget games like Whipseey to feature good soundtracks, but that’s not the case in here. The same can’t be said about the overall sound effects.	Fun Factor: 6.0 Whipseey offers some unexciting but casual fun with its simple gameplay, occasionally challenging platforming sections and tough bosses. Sadly, it only lasts for less than an hour, with little to no replayability.
Final Verdict: 7.0

Whipseey and the Lost Atlas is available now on PS4, Xbox One, PC and Switch.

Reviewed on Switch.

A copy of Whipseey and the Lost Atlas was provided by the publisher.