I’ll reiterate something I’ve mentioned in my Gex Trilogy and PaperKlay reviews: if you want to grab my attention prior to the release of a game, mention the fact it’s a 3D platformer inspired by classic collectathons. It won’t mean I will automatically love it, or be biased towards it, but it will draw my attention towards it like a moth to the Burning Man festival pyre. But sure, it also helps when the game in question ends up being excellent, and this is exactly what Ruffy and the Riverside is, one of the most joyful surprises of the year so far.

I had to turn these formerly-metal crates into wooden crates so then they would float on water and become a platform.

In this adorable game, you play as the titular Ruffy, a furry little character I can only describe as an Ewok with a huge grin, in a quest to rid the world of the villainous Groll, a multidimensional cube-like thing whose main plan is to destroy the World Core, and throw the land of Riverside into perpetual chaos. A plot that does little more than to give an overall reason as to why you’re travelling from land to land, righting wrongs, and collecting macguffins to no end, but I appreciate the fact the characters were adorable, the writing was somewhat decent, and the sense of humor was on par with other classic 3D platformers. No voice acting, not even voice samples, were featured, but the dialogue itself was enough to add charm and charisma to each character you meet along the way.

As for the gameplay, this is where Ruffy and the Riverside stands out from the rest of the crowd. Sure, its Paper Mario-esque visuals are also a really strong aspect, but what made me play the game for hours on end on my ROG Ally was its really neat gameplay loop. It is a 3D platformer, sure, but there’s more to it than that. I’d call it a hybrid between the classic collectathons from the Nintendo 64 era, an open world exploratory adventure like Breath of the Wild and Immortals: Fenyx Rising, and a puzzler. Let me explain you why.

Ruffy and the Riverside has some 2D sections akin to Super Mario Odyssey.

There are lots of small puzzles to solve, which will grant you collectible macguffins that can either help you solve other puzzles, open new areas, or further progress with the plot. But even if the game gives you a straightforward objective to venture towards, it is not stopping you from freely exploring some massive areas without any repercussions. You might only be able to unlock some areas by progressing with the story, but there is more than enough side content for you to mess around with, just like in Link’s open world adventures. Some mandatory side areas even look and feel like Hyrule’s Shrines.

At the same time, everything is solved by completing puzzles. Ruffy and the Riverside is not about completing platforming gauntlets. It’s mostly about using the game’s main gimmick to solve every single context-sensitive puzzle thrown at you. May I introduce you to the Swap mechanic.

A big world to explore, as well as a main town full of NPCs to interact with.

Ruffy has the ability to copy the texture of an object, and paste it onto another object, whilst changing its physical properties. For instance, you can copy the texture of some vines and paste it onto a waterfall, turning it into a gigantic, climbable structure. You can copy the texture of an ice block, paste it on the freaking sea, and then turn what was once an impossible-to-venture area into an immense walkable floor. You may turn water into lava in order to kill an invincible shark, change the texture of an arrow from up-top to bottom-down to unlock a door, and so on.

This is how the game throws all puzzles at you. It’s all based on using your creativity, and your knowledge of in-game physical properties, in order to know what to copy, when to copy, and where to paste it. It’s a genius method of giving you more than one way to solve any kind of puzzle, whilst making repeated scenarios fresh and appealing. It also makes you forget about focusing on combat, as you can even use different kinds of textures to defeat enemies, from the aforementioned use of lava on water to turning a rock structure into a magnet. You can’t create assets, so these limitations also ensure you have to memorize item placements on each level, encouraging exploration further.

These little fellas are Ruffy and the Riverside’s Koroks.

The controls are responsive, and the puzzle level of difficulty is never too easy or too egregious. The game wants you to figure things out by yourself, but if you’re not able to, it doesn’t solve things outright for you; instead, you are given a hint by, say, a friendly crow or a friendly bird, for instance. And you’re not harshly punished for doing so, as you just need to offer them a few coins for an additional hint. You still have to properly do the puzzle as the hints tell you, so you still need to put in a modicum of effort, which makes the game accessible to newcomers without ever feeling too condescending or patronizing.

All in all, a fantastic experience, but that doesn’t mean Ruffy and the Riverside doesn’t have an issue or two. Well, maybe calling them “issues” is a bit of an exaggeration, as none of them ruined or compromised the overall experience. Let’s just call them “quabbles”, if you will. I’d say the sound department is just decent at best when compared to the rest of the game’s outstanding, Paper Mario-esque presentation, and that the button placement is quite confusing and inconvenient, with copying textures being tied to RB and pasting them tied to RT. Then again, nothing you cannot get used to after a while. Even the somewhat initially slow camera controls can be fixed by visiting the pause menu.

Some areas act like Shrines from Breath of the Wild.

Ruffy and the Riverside is a joyful little game with a really inventive gameplay loop. It mixes elements from open world adventures, logic-based puzzles, and the level structure of classic 3D collectathons to create something that is truly unique, whilst still being accessible, and not at all condescending. It also helps that its visuals are great, and its sense of humor is completely on point. Even if I had one or two (very small) issues with some of its aspects, it was nothing that would turn the game into a dealbreaker. It’s just a fantastic indie game that is absolutely worth your time, no matter the kind of game you’re into. An even better deal if you grab it on a portable, considering how perfect its gameplay structure is when enjoyed in small sessions.

Ruffy and the Riverside is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PC and Switch.

Reviewed on Intel i7-12700H, 16GB RAM, RTX 3060 6GB and Asus ROG Ally.

A copy of Ruffy and the Riverside was provided by the publisher.