Since this is my first post, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Anthony but I go by The Real Ant-Man. I've been playing games since some of my earliest memories. I would say circa 1985....ish. Either way, yeah I'm old. I've also been blogging/writing/reviewing and most recently live streaming for the last decade. My work can be found on GameGravy, NintendoFever and currently Slightly Off Topic.
So now back to the matter at hand. Why should you play The Touryst. Let's start with the game's developer Shin'en Multimedia. Founded in 1999 and based in Munich, Germany, the company's resume speaks volumes. With classics under their belts such as Iridion 3D, Nanostray, Jett Rocket, Art of Balance, Nano Assault and Fast Racing Neo (the developer's homage to the Nintendo classic F-Zero GX), Shin'en is no stranger to great titles on Nintendo Hardware.
The Touryst's game engine is built from the ground up for the Nintendo Switch and these wizards get some tip top performance out of their title. Digital Foundry, one of the top industries top performance analyzers, claim that the game while docked the game runs at a steady 1080p and 60fps while rarely dipping. In handheld mode 720p is reached but again the 60fps are a constant with rare dips and in both modes the game never really takes more then a few seconds to load new areas.
So with all that said, what makes The Touryst fun? Let's start with the voxel art style that really brings the islands and colors to life. You will receive different tasks once you sail to each island and the gameplay s mixed enough that you never feel like you are doing the same quest twice. Just like in classic NES games, there is absolutely no hand-holding. You need to explorer every inch of the island and talk to everyone. The puzzles themselves aren't difficult, but you still get that rewarding feeling when they come together and you figure them out.
The soundtrack is fantastic as well. There are tracks to unlock at the in game record store as well as an arcade you can visit to play 16-bit homages to F-Zero, Breakout and Jetpack (with a crappy screen filter to boot.... for realism of course.) The "records" you unlock feature music from Shin'en's past games, which is a pleasant surprise for long time fans.
The Touryst launched on the Nintendo eShop on November 20th for $19.99. The game took me between 8-10 hours to 100% and I'm already looking forward to diving back in and live streaming this indie Game of the Year contender. If you like Nintendo or adventure games this is a can't miss as the amount of polish is felt with every detail put into this game.
Catch The Real Ant-Man live every Wednesday on Slightly Off Topic
Nintendo Switch: NintendoFanBoy
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