Today’s roundup of new console ports includes Wobbly Life, Rebel Transmute and Vasilisa and Baba Yaga – three very different but interesting titles to play. Here are our reviews.
Wobbly Life review (Switch)
Wobbly Life lands on Switch after earning fans on PC, and while it retains its chaotic charm, this new version occasionally strains under its ambition. As a wobbly blob kicked out by Grandma to earn a living, you’re thrust into a sandbox world brimming with quirky jobs, mini-games, and collect-a-thons. The concept – complete with weathered physics and goofball humor – is delightful and makes for an entertaining, if occasionally aimless, experience that is a lot of fun to take on the go.
The gameplay thrives on variety: from driving wacky vehicles to delivering pizzas or exploring hidden caves for artifacts, the mix of missions keeps things feeling fresh. Co‑op modes are where the game feels most alive, with friends turning mundane tasks into hilarious chaos. Solo passengers may still enjoy the world’s zaniness, but some jobs can become repetitive without a partner-in-crime to liven things up and laugh with.
On Switch, Wobbly Life visualizes its silliness well with bright, colorful environments and exaggerated character designs. However, technical compromises are hard to ignore – pop‑in is frequent, frame rate dips happen in busy scenes, and physics glitches can make tasks comical or frustrating depending on the moment. We haven’t been able to test drive this one on a Switch 2, so we don’t know how the experience is there. The soundtrack and sound effects lean into playful styles that suit the open-world vibe, even if they don’t truly stand out.
Ultimately, Wobbly Life on Switch is a decent port of a lovable sandbox romp, though it’s best enjoyed in short bursts or with friends to offset performance hiccups. It’s a novelty to drive a wobbly taxi or chase chickens in search of treasure, but those seeking deeper gameplay or smoother performance may find it lacking. Still, for a low-priced, good-natured diversion with plenty of goofy setups, this rollicking blob of fun does most things right and is at home on the Switch.
Rebel Transmute review (PS5)
Rebel Transmute arrives on PlayStation 5 bearing all the usual metroidvania trappings – vibrant pixel art, an interconnected sci-fi world, and a rich upgrade system that lets you shape your own path. You follow Moon Mikono, a space scrapper on a quest to uncover her missing mother, exploring areas like lush Overgrowth forests and neon-tinged Coral Fissures. The narrative unfolds through engaging encounters with robot NPCs and lore-filled terminals that deepen your connection to this visually striking universe – which was originally available on PC only.
At its heart, Rebel Transmute excels in combat customization, offering over 50 augments and Bloodcast spells that allow you to tailor Moon’s abilities to your style. Whether you favor aggressive blasting, defensive area control, or summoning creatures, the game supports varied approaches – though balancing these builds can be a bit fiddly, and switching between setups mid-run isn’t always seamless. Boss fights and standard encounters feel satisfying, but occasional dips in difficulty pacing can disrupt momentum.
The platforming and traversal elements are solid: wall jumps, void dash, and spin bashes feel tight and responsive. However, some sections veer toward visual ambiguity, making it tricky to judge spatial relationships during platform jumps – especially when combined with enemies or low-light environments. The built-in mapping and mark-up system is one of the game’s strongest features, helping you track progress in its sprawling world and locate secrets or side quests with ease.
Sonically, Rebel Transmute has much to offer. From haunting exploration tracks to adrenaline-fueled boss themes, the soundtrack reinforces the mood of each zone. Particle effects, enemy sounds, and voice snippets add enough texture to the world, even if the occasional bit of screen clutter makes it hard to hear everything clearly. In the end, Rebel Transmute is a compelling creation: a heartfelt sci-fi journey with flexibility in playstyle and immersive presentation. It stumbles over minor pacing and clarity issues, but its strengths in customization, atmosphere, and narrative make it a strong addition to any metroidvania fan’s library.
Vasilisa and Baba Yaga review (PS5)
Vasilisa and Baba Yaga offers beautiful yet eerie dive into Slavic folklore, transporting players to a hand-drawn world where you control young Vasilisa on a quest through haunted forests and spectral realms. You arrive seeking Baba Yaga’s power to stand up to a cruel stepmother, but what begins as a familiar fairy-tale quickly shifts into a string of varied mini-games and atmospheric sequences. You’ll wash dishes, dodge spirits, bake pirogi, and slip past mythical guardians like Vodyanoy and Leshy – all compiled with nods to traditional Russian storytelling and narrated in a dialect-rich voiceover.
The game’s greatest asset is its atmosphere: richly crafted visuals combine with folk-inspired audio and thoughtful narration to create an immersive, haunting tone. The folklore encyclopedia adds depth, offering context for each creature and ritual encountered. The aesthetic cohesion and cultural authenticity deserve praise though that same atmosphere also exposes the game’s limitations in terms of mechanics.
Where Vasilisa and Baba Yaga excels in mood and cultural immersion, it sometimes falters in variety and pacing. The succession of mini-games, no matter how thematically apt, can feel repetitive once the novelty wears off. Combat and stealth segments – like sneaking past spirits – tend to be forgiving and brief, offering only glimpses of tension before moving on to another activity. As a result, the narrative rhythm occasionally lacks the emotional payoff that longer-form adventure games deliver.
Ultimately, Vasilisa and Baba Yaga is an atmospheric gem – short, charming, and steeped in folklore, perfect for players seeking narrative ambiance over gameplay depth. With strong storytelling and visual design, this is a delightful detour into Slavic myth. Just don’t expect an epic adventure; it’s more a fairy-tale vignette than a sprawling journey – a potent, beautifully packaged curiosity even if it’s a bit shallow as a game.
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