Stick it to The Man!
- December 13, 2013
- Zoink Games
- 6h median play time
I’m not sure what happened, but I can’t ignore these bugs. They leave what is otherwise a great game, just good on the Switch. If you missed this on the Wii U, don’t miss it again, but maybe wait until it gets a patch.
Get on Steam
Get on Epic Games Store"Stick it to The Man!" is a quirky 2D adventure game where you, as hard-hat tester Ray, gain the ability to read minds and modify the world with stickers. After a strange accident, Ray must clear his name, fight against a conspiracy, and deal with bizarre characters in a darkly comic story. Use your wits, stickers, and imagination to navigate through the intricate puzzles and save the day.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Playstation 5
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox Series X|S
PlayStation
Playstation 3
Playstation Vita
Wii
Wii U
Xbox
Reviews
- Unique and charming art style reminiscent of classic cartoons, enhancing the overall experience.
- Hilarious writing and voice acting that keeps players engaged and entertained throughout the game.
- Creative gameplay mechanics involving mind reading and sticker application that add a fun twist to puzzle-solving.
- The game is relatively short, typically taking around 4-5 hours to complete, which may leave players wanting more.
- Some gameplay mechanics, particularly the platforming and stealth sections, can feel clunky and frustrating at times.
- Limited replay value as the game does not offer much incentive to play through again after completing it.
- humor376 mentions
- 99 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its clever writing, quirky characters, and engaging dialogue, often drawing comparisons to the comedic style of Double Fine Productions and games like Psychonauts. While many players find the humor consistently funny and charming, some critiques mention that certain jokes can become repetitive or fall flat. Overall, the game is celebrated as a delightful and entertaining experience, with humor being a central aspect that enhances its appeal.
“Hilarious genius, well crafted & dare I say tested puzzles and unique and fun gameplay.”
“The story is great, the puzzles are amazing, the humor is ten outta ten.”
“Stick it to the man is hands down one of the most hilarious and original games I have played this year.”
“There are moments of over-the-top humor, but much of it falls flat and fails to be funny.”
“While there are some amusing moments, the humor often misses the mark and feels forced.”
- story247 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 49 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's story is characterized as humorous, whimsical, and engaging, often featuring quirky characters and lighthearted themes. While some players find the narrative simple and not particularly memorable, many appreciate its charm and comedic elements, making it enjoyable for a short playthrough. Overall, the storytelling is seen as a strong point, complemented by good voice acting and a unique art style, though some critiques mention a lack of depth and complexity in the plot.
“The story is humorous, weird, and actually pretty dark at times; but it tells its story without ever taking itself too seriously.”
“The world it is set in is unique and the story is interesting enough to make me want to complete the game and find resolution for the characters.”
“A silly but engaging story, interesting visual style and game mechanics that are gimmicky but enjoyable all come together to make a title that in the end is quite good for something so easily missable, and absolutely receives a recommendation from me.”
“Without challenging gameplay, all we are left with is really just a well-drawn movie with a fairly basic story.”
“Despite having a huge setup, nothing in this game's storyline has any payoff.”
“$15 for 3 hours of terrible puzzles, terrible writing, terrible voice acting, and a terrible story.”
- graphics213 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique and charming art style, often described as a blend of paper and cardboard aesthetics reminiscent of classic titles like Psychonauts. Players appreciate the vibrant visuals, hand-drawn characters, and the way the art complements the gameplay and humor, creating an engaging and whimsical atmosphere. Overall, the graphics are considered a standout feature, enhancing the game's quirky narrative and enjoyable mechanics.
“The art style of paper in a 3D environment is just fantastic and it really is super creative visually.”
“The visuals and art design are phenomenal.”
“The graphics are awesome as well, and I love the paper world feel.”
“Very intriguing as a game, the story is fairly lackluster in many aspects, some very interesting characters are barely glanced over, the art style can be a bit tough on the eyes at some points.”
“The humour gets old real quick, but the neat visuals make up for it in style.”
“At first glance, graphics can seem kiddy and unexciting, but they are just different and you end up loving them.”
- gameplay169 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by a unique blend of simple mechanics, including mind-reading and sticker manipulation, which contribute to engaging puzzle-solving experiences. While the game offers a quirky art style and humorous narrative, it is often criticized for its short length and occasional tedious stealth sections. Overall, players appreciate the fun and creativity in the gameplay, despite its lack of depth and some repetitive elements.
“A somewhat short but very sweet puzzler with an original art style and concept, as well as snappy humor and satisfying gameplay.”
“The gameplay revolves around you aiding said NPCs by finding items they need in order to progress.”
“Gameplay-wise, the majority consists of using your abilities to solve puzzles, by both reading minds and making use of stickers to change around the environment.”
“The gameplay itself isn't that great.”
“There are unavoidable stealth sections that are very tedious and awkward because of the clunky platformer mechanics.”
“A groanworthy sense of humor and plodding, repetitive gameplay distract from the beautiful animation and interesting story that this game has to offer - having to stop every 10-15 seconds to hear one-dimensional pseudo-tongue-in-cheek dialogue might be your idea of fun, but it's not mine.”
- music107 mentions
- 63 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its diversity, catchiness, and ability to enhance the overall experience, with many reviewers highlighting the jazzy soundtrack and memorable theme song. While some ambient tracks may not stand out, the combination of engaging music, strong voice acting, and unique art style contributes to a delightful and immersive atmosphere. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a significant strength, adding to the game's charm and appeal.
“The music is both diverse and funny.”
“I like the paper graphics here; it’s so elegant and cheerful. The music is beautiful and spot on that it couldn’t get better actually, the puzzles are fun to solve, and the atmosphere will get you hooked in immediately.”
“Easily one of the best games I have ever played, great music, perfect writing, and a funny story to boot!”
“I've tried looking for the soundtrack on YouTube or let's plays on YouTube and I barely found anything.”
“- only one real song (trailer/title one), rest is ambient audio.”
“As for the title song, it fell flat for me when I listened to it on its own; however, as a theme/title screen song for the game it fits in well.”
- replayability22 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 55 % negative mentions
Overall, the game has limited replayability, primarily due to its short playtime of around four to six hours and the lack of substantial content to revisit after completion. While players may enjoy the fun puzzles and engaging story, the main incentive for replaying lies in achieving all Steam achievements or attempting personal challenges, which many reviewers found insufficient to enhance long-term enjoyment.
“The game is also really fun and replayable and has an interesting story.”
“This game is not very long (took 6 hours of playtime to complete), very challenging, and has good replayability.”
“The main drawback for me is short-term replayability.”
“You can fly through it in a few sessions, and aside from trying to get all the achievements, I feel like there's not much replayability to this game, which is a shame.”
“The game itself is pretty short, and there is not much replay value.”
“And the game is full of these great, little puzzles and they’re all fun to solve, but this is also due to the fact that it’s a short game of roughly four to five hours of gameplay with no replay value after you finish it.”
- atmosphere14 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is a mixed bag, with some praising its elegant paper graphics and beautiful music that create an engaging and cheerful environment. However, others criticize the static nature of the environments and the one-dimensional characters, which can diminish the overall charm and immersion. Overall, while the atmosphere can be captivating, it may not sustain its appeal for all players.
“I like the paper graphics here, it’s so elegant and cheerful, the music is beautiful and spot on that it couldn’t get better actually, the puzzles are fun to solve, and the atmosphere will get you hooked in immediately.”
“Game has a very nice atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere of total insanity in a sauce of jokes about the smoking man from X-Files, pirates, Peter Pan, and Moby-D.”
“Unfortunately, that's the game's only real source of inspiration and, paired with the frankly huge cast of one-dimensional characters, the atmosphere loses its charm faster than a leprechaun on speed.”
“✘ sub-par atmosphere (very static environments)”
“Probably the biggest difference between the cave and stick it to the man is the atmosphere.”
- character development14 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The game features exceptional character development, highlighted by unique and inventive designs that reflect distinct personalities, reminiscent of Double Fine's Psychonauts. Players appreciate the engaging voice acting and witty writing, which enhance the overall experience despite the game's brevity. The distinctive "cardboard diorama" visual style and puppet animation further contribute to the memorable character portrayals.
“Amazing character design, voice acting, writing, and just overall a great game. I recommend it fully.”
“The character design is amazing as every character looks unique with a different personality.”
“Though it's short, it has a lot to offer from the plot to the character designs and finally the dialogue.”
“It really feels inspired by Double Fine's Psychonauts, from the character design to the goofy mind-reading.”
“Unique 'cardboard diorama' visual style with puppet animation and zany character designs.”
- grinding10 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspects of the game to be tedious, particularly in later levels where backtracking and repetitive tasks, such as placing stickers and dealing with henchmen, become frustrating. The clunky mechanics during stealth sections and the delays in regaining control further contribute to the overall sense of monotony in gameplay. While the sticker rearranging mechanic is generally enjoyable, it is overshadowed by these tedious elements.
“In the later levels, it gets pretty tedious because you basically have to stand in a particular location, place a sticker on a dude, and run for it.”
“If there's any other issue in regards to gameplay, I would say the segments with the henchmen get pretty tedious after a while and it's often annoying to be reading the mind of one, only to then have them walk out of the frame you can do so as they charge over to you, with a small delay between moments of getting in control again.”
“There are unavoidable stealth sections that are very tedious and awkward because of the clunky platformer mechanics.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, users report a generally stable experience with occasional sound glitches noted by some players. However, several reviewers experienced no issues or glitches at all during their gameplay.
“✘ occasional sound glitches”
“✘ occasional sound glitches”
- optimization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has received mixed feedback, with users reporting varying performance levels on systems equipped with a GTX 970, i7-4790K, 16GB of RAM, and SSDs. While some players experience smooth gameplay, others encounter performance issues, indicating that optimization may not be consistent across all hardware configurations.
Critic Reviews
Stick It To The Man Review
Stick It To The Man invites you into a world of cardboard streets, conjoined luchadores triplets and shady psychiatrists for just a few hours, but within that time are some of the funniest, most outrageous and original concepts seen on the Wii U to date. Its unique blend of psychic gameplay and surreal visuals won't appeal to everyone, but if you want to spend a free afternoon with something completely different then it's well worth a look.
80%Stick it To The Man Review
Stick it To The Man is a total blast to play. The puzzles may not be all that challenging, but the beautiful visuals, catchy soundtrack, and wonderful humour make it stick out above other adventure games. The campaign tells a silly but charming story with many unpredictable twists and turns. And despite it’s short run time, Stick it To The Man is a truly fun and memorable experience that will have you glued to the screen.
80%Stick it to The Man Review
An enjoyable indie platformer with some nostalgic adventuring thrown in for good measure. The humour gets old real quick, but the neat visuals make up for it in style.
70%
