Mable & The Wood

Mable & The Wood on PC is really enjoyable at times and very frustrating at others. Furthermore, Mable & The Wood caused a full cycle of emotions while playing through the main story.

55%Game Brain Score

gameplay, story

graphics, stability

50% User Score Based on 50 reviews

Critic Score 67%Based on 3 reviews

Platforms

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About

Mable & The Wood is a single player platformer game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Graffiti_Games and was released on August 23, 2019. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and neutral reviews from players.

Will you banish the darkness from the world, or will you become it? Mable & The Wood is an adventure platformer about a shape-shifting girl whose power might be destroying the world she's trying to save.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+14

Skip User Reviews

50%

Audience ScoreBased on 50 reviews

gameplay5 positive mentions

stability5 negative mentions

Unique and innovative gameplay mechanics involving shapeshifting forms that offer different movement and combat styles.
Art style and music are well-received, providing a charming and atmospheric experience.
The game offers interesting freedom and multiple endings, including pacifist and violent routes, adding replayability.

Controls are clunky and awkward, especially the spider and ghost forms, leading to frustrating movement and combat.
Numerous bugs and glitches, including issues with collision detection, backtracking, and game progression blockers.
Map and navigation are poorly implemented, with unreliable or minimal map features causing confusion and backtracking frustration.

gameplay
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
66%
13%
The gameplay is innovative with unique shape-shifting mechanics and interesting level design, offering varied ways to overcome obstacles and enemies. However, it is often criticized for being clunky, inconsistent, and sometimes tedious, with issues in controls, pacing, and difficulty spikes that hinder overall enjoyment. While the game shows potential for experienced players seeking something different, many find the gameplay frustrating and in need of refinement.
- “Secret areas, different ways to overcome obstacles and enemies, a wide and open world (where you can get lost easily), nice pixel art, and very innovative game mechanics make this a game for experienced gamers who want to play something different from the usual metroidvanias.”
- “- Enjoyed the unique 'no jump' mechanic -- you have to use your shape-shifting powers to get around, like flying short distances as a fairy, or (my personal favourite) swinging across long stretches as the spider, or flinging yourself at enemies as a stone golem (very satisfying).”
- “But, still, the levels themselves are really interesting, and introduce various mechanics and enemy types as you go along, which you need to make use of your new transformations to overcome.”
- “The gameplay is messy, and the level design is just awfully boring.”
- “Those are: spider form, fairy form, stone form, mole form, and medusa form, but sadly all of them are annoying. With this gameplay, neither the visuals nor story take the interest of players like me. Sadly, gameplay is the worst part of this game, and this is not a movie, anime, or TV show; it's a game, so we need good gameplay.”
- “Sometimes the commands are not so responsive, and the gameplay doesn't feel tight.”
story
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
46%
23%
The story has interesting potential and an engaging atmosphere supported by art and music, but it is criticized for weak writing and lack of meaningful narrative payoff. While some appreciate the story's themes and alternative routes, many find it underdeveloped and overshadowed by frustrating gameplay. Overall, the storytelling is seen as average and hindered by game mechanics.
- “I like the art style and the story so far, people have surprisingly much to say and the music is fitting and adds to a nice atmosphere.”
- “Great game and story for the first few hours of playing so far.”
- “Thanks to the different abilities, some puzzles can be skipped entirely, and not only is it possible to beat the story without ever killing a single enemy, but it also unlocks a secret ending.”
- “And that there were more distinctions between the pacifist and violent routes, because you mostly go to the same places and deal with the same plot points.”
- “You would think the story would lead to that, but... although it sort of hints at something like that throughout the game, there's no payoff.”
- “In fact, although there's a story, it's kinda garbage.”
graphics
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The game's graphics feature a retro pixel art style that fits its narrative and atmosphere, which many players appreciate despite being outdated by modern PC standards. However, the fixed resolution and lack of graphical options limit visual customization. Overall, while the visuals are generally praised, technical issues and design choices hinder the gameplay experience.
- “Graphics is nice and music is good also.”
- “I like the art style and the story so far, people have surprisingly much to say and the music is fitting and adds to a nice atmosphere.”
- “There's no graphics tweaking options, resolution is fixed, so this falls far beneath minimum acceptable standard for PC.”
- “Despite being released in 2019, the developer chose to use obsolete retro pixel art as a substitute for contemporary PC graphics.”
- “The pixelated art style absolutely fits its narrative.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The music in the game is generally well-received, praised for its fitting atmosphere and contribution to the overall experience. Despite some negative comments about certain music assets, most users find the soundtrack enjoyable and complementary to the art and story.
- “I like the art style and the story so far; people have surprisingly much to say, and the music is fitting and adds to a nice atmosphere.”
- “There were issues and frustrating parts of course, but the music is pretty and helps to get through some level designs that feel like padding to slow the pace down.”
- “Other than that, I really loved the concept, music, and art.”
- “Music assets are poor quality.”
- “There were issues and frustrating parts, but the music is pretty and helps to get through some level designs that feel like padding to slow the pace down.”
stability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from frequent bugs and glitches that disrupt gameplay, causing frustration and detracting from the overall experience. Stability issues appear to be significant, with many players encountering persistent problems during key mechanics.
- “To put it simply, this game is frustrating and a little bit buggy.”
- “While pulling on the string, it's more like a long series of glitches that takes you from point A to point B.”
- “Most of this review has been me complaining about glitches.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect appears limited or unclear based on the provided text, as the user mainly describes gameplay progress rather than expressing specific feelings or emotional engagement.
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding features innovative mechanics set in an interesting world, but many users find the process tedious and repetitive.
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers unique side-scrolling combat and features multiple endings and secrets, enhancing its replayability.
- “It uses a style of combat that I haven't seen done in a side scroller, and the multiple endings and secrets add replayability.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is praised for its appealing art style, engaging story with well-developed characters, and fitting music that enhances the overall immersive experience.
- “I like the art style and the story so far; people have surprisingly much to say, and the music is fitting and adds to a nice atmosphere.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor is appreciated for its clever integration with the game's shape-shifting mechanics and puzzle-solving, adding a lighthearted and enjoyable tone to the overall experience.