The Witch & The 66 Mushrooms
- November 7, 2020
- KADOKAWA
Get on SteamIn "The Witch & the 66 Mushrooms," players control a young girl on a mission to rescue her brother from a witch. This 2D action-adventure game features sprawling stages filled with various enemies to defeat using an array of weapons. The game also encourages exploration to find hidden mushrooms and unlock maps, making for a fun and engaging experience.
Nintendo Switch
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Charming pixel art style and cute character design, making for an enjoyable visual experience.
- Fun and engaging gameplay with a variety of mechanics, including a helpful hint system for collecting mushrooms.
- Short and sweet, providing a lighthearted metroidvania experience that is easy to pick up and play.
- The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches, including issues with controls and getting stuck in walls.
- Lack of clarity in controls and instructions, particularly for keyboard users, which can lead to frustration.
- The overall length and simplicity of the game may leave some players wanting more depth and replay value.
- gameplay19 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 37 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this metroidvania title is generally praised for its intuitive controls, engaging mechanics, and enjoyable exploration, with a variety of boss fights that offer unique challenges. While the game is short (around 3.5 hours for completion), players appreciate the depth in mastering its mechanics and the charming art and music. However, some minor control issues and underwhelming boss encounters were noted, suggesting that while the game is fun and well-crafted, it may lack the complexity and challenge some players desire.
“Each boss had a different mechanic on how they must be beaten, and some may be a little tricky to figure out at first.”
“Intuitive controls, and fun nuances in gameplay mechanics alike.”
“The gameplay is 10/10, the mushrooms all have riddle-like hints to help you find them and were a joy to understand and execute.”
“As the first game I ever played developed on this Pixel Game Maker MV software, I have to say it's pretty ambitious to develop a small-sized metroidvania title, but even then it has its shortcomings, particularly small things that end up mattering on the whole gameplay experience. For starters, while the controls seem decent enough, there are some minor decisions like running while holding the attack button as if this was a game developed for a system with very few buttons. In reality, you could easily fix this by making just tapping the same direction twice like in Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. Furthermore, the difference in movement and speed between walking and dashing could be a bit more pronounced.”
“But hey, the quality is here, so I can recommend it anyway. Just keep in mind that it's a simple, well-made, short metroidvania game without many mechanics and areas.”
“You should be more mindful when you put accessible healing mechanics into the game; the difficulty is not high enough to require it.”
- music18 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The music in these games is frequently praised for its charm and retro appeal, often evoking nostalgia with comparisons to classic titles like Banjo and Lemmings. Reviewers highlight the soundtracks as enjoyable and fitting for the cute, whimsical aesthetics of the games, contributing positively to the overall experience. While some describe the music as serviceable, many find it to be a standout feature that enhances the gameplay and atmosphere.
“Everything feels good to do, the music is very charming (everything's charming, really) and it's a cleverly made thing that's worth experiencing.”
“Ggs, amazing value on sale metroidvania with music that reminisce of Banjo, Lemmings and its own spooky witchy vibe.”
“Overall, a cute, short, metroidvania game that's fun and a little voice-acting with chill music.”
“It's a short metroidvania with music that's easy to listen to for a while, and mechanics that are simple.”
“Overall, a cute, short, metroidvania game that's fun and has a little voice acting with chill music.”
“All around enjoyable metroidvania when it comes to art, music, and gameplay, I would say about 3 to 4 hours long with very casual difficulty.”
- graphics11 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 9 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The game features charming pixel graphics and a delightful retro soundtrack, which many players find appealing. The aesthetic is consistently praised for its cuteness and overall character, contributing to an enjoyable platforming and metroidvania experience. However, some users noted issues with puzzle mechanics that detract from the otherwise polished visual presentation.
“Nice pixel graphics, and great crunchy retro sound effects and soundtrack.”
“A charming platformer and metroidvania game with a cute pixel art style.”
“Super cute graphics, nice music, simple story, and a dang plethora of hidden items, all in a short and sweet lil metroidvania.”
“The only draw of the game is the cute aesthetic and the neat weapons.”
“A charming platformer and Metroidvania game with a cute pixel art style.”
“These are the graphics and music I wanted for a game like this.”
- story8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the reviewed games shows a clear divide, with titles like "Animal Well" and "SteamWorld Dig 2" receiving praise for their engaging narratives, while others such as "Worldless" and "Dandara" are criticized for their confusing or lackluster plots. Overall, many players appreciate simple yet charming stories that complement the gameplay, though some find certain narratives overly convoluted or unsatisfying.
“This is a cute short metroidvania with a lot of fairy tale influence in the story and bosses.”
“Super cute graphics, nice music, simple story, and a plethora of hidden items, all in a short and sweet little metroidvania.”
“The story is very confusing... why does the main character become a witch???”
“Well, it's a nice game, quick to complete (around 3.5h for 100%), the gameplay is mostly very smooth, art and music are neat, plot is simple but since it's quick that isn't that much of a problem.”
“Charming little metroidvania-like drawing a lot of inspiration from old storybook myths and fairy tales.”
- stability5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous bugs and glitches reported, some of which are game-breaking and require players to reload or restart. While many players find ways to work around these issues, the frequency and severity of the glitches detract from the overall experience.
“It's very buggy.”
“First, let me point out that the game does have a few glitches.”
“As I said above, I've run into a few glitches, some game-breaking ones that forced me to load and even start over.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game has limited replayability, primarily due to its linear design, which detracts from the exploration typically expected in a metroidvania. While players can engage in collecting additional items like mushrooms for a bit more playtime, the overall experience lacks significant incentives for replay.
“It's also amazingly railroaded for a metroidvania game; there is absolutely zero replay value.”
“Not much in terms of replay value. If you want, you can go around collecting all of the mushrooms, which should add at least one more hour.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to the challenge of collecting 66 mushrooms, some of which are difficult to spot. Despite this, the game is praised as one of the best in its genre.
“The goal of collecting 66 mushrooms, many of which can be hard to see or notice, is tedious and reminds me of the second Metroid game.”
