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I have been greatly enjoying all the little mascots making their gaming debuts over the past year. One style grabbed my heart as of late: the zone-based 3D platformers focused on exploration using the climbing/glider combination as the basis of their movement. Seems like a highly specific collection of ideas, but ever since The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild hit the shelves, gaming has seen quite a few of these.
None had me as excited as Smushi Come Home from SomeHumbleOnion, the demo of which I got to try during the last Steam NextFest. I was happy to see a new approach to both pillars of this style. Gone was the Zelda stamina wheel for climbing, replaced by simply being able to stick to any surface once per jump and chaining it into one more jump. The glider, on the other hand, kept you steady until the whole meter was lost, only then would Smushi start falling.
This led to a new lens through which I could explore such a game. Now, in the full version, with three impressively large zones, each with named locations and sub-areas to find, there is plenty for tiny little, lost Smushi to discover. These areas are populated with instantly noticeable landmarks, such as a set of paper lanterns, abandoned Buddha statues or large, hollow tree trunks.
Should you feel lost, Smushi Come Home provides an option to grab a map at the start of each zone. Some players might enjoy exploring without it, and the game leaves it up to them. I am sure the tiny protagonist would not mind one, however, as they find themselves separated from their family in the Smushi Come Home’s opening. The miniature fungus needs to find a way back home and return to their family.
Smushi Come Home is a classic story of the tiniest of creatures finding themselves in need of undergoing an epic journey, ultimately finding not only their goal but also themselves. On their way, they find other silly little (or occasionally even large) creatures in need of help. One may need an item from a nearby location, while another might be selling one for some of the shiny crystals found in the nooks and crannies of each zone.
Smushi’s interactions with them are short but sweet, communicated through little squeaks and stylized, moving text boxes. The personality of each of the forest’s inhabitants instantly shines through both, as the designs themselves consist of somewhat abstract shapes for anything that is not a part of an actual animal. Smushi Come Home is nice and cozy, but just weird enough to keep surprising.
These designs fit very well with the abstract layout of the land. Though the map may look nice and clean, the zones are riddled with all sorts of objects blocking paths and obstructing the view. Many crystals hide underneath broken pieces of human civilization, while others serve as small visual puzzles. Sometimes they may even lead to a new skin!
Such a complex layout also allows for the glider and the climbing gear to shine. Smushi Come Home hides upgrades to all aspects of movement throughout its cluttered areas, and that steady progress was an incredibly satisfying aspect of the whole experience. I had the most fun platforming through not only the designed challenges but also self-imposed ones.
How long can I go without touching the ground? How high up can I get? Can I get out of bounds? Can’t say I found a way to achieve that last one, several invisible walls are preventing that, but I did reach some areas that did not seem accessible, and that feeling of trying to adventure beyond the intended area is enough of a reward for me.
Smushi Come Home is a very tight three-hour experience, which I went through without bugs or noticing any visual inconsistencies. The draw distance could be a tad better; even on the highest settings there is still some occasional pop-in, but it is rarely noticeable even when moving at high speeds, and the environments are always rich and detailed regardless. The menus provide multiple options for pixelation to fine-tune your ideal look for the game.
My biggest issue lies with the music. I have no qualms about the soundtrack from Failpositive—it’s whimsical and manages to surprise with a left-turn instrument at the best of times—but rather its implementation. It is a dynamic soundtrack, meant to change or even quiet down completely depending on your position in the level. The triggers for this are wildly inconsistent and manage to completely kill the vibe on occasion.
This gets worse when you reach higher speeds, particularly with the glider. The wonderful arrangements may turn into a cacophony of one instrument interrupting another before it can even get going, or the whole game may sound like a sibling is playing with the volume knob on your speakers. I would like to see the triggers for complete silence removed at the very least.
Though the vibes may suffer on occasion, the ever-present positivity, Smushi’s helpful nature and their determination to arrive back home are pleasantly overwhelming. The variety in every area, quest and conversation make for a title that never loses steam. The movement upgrades and an occasional minigame help spice things up as well, making Smushi Come Home my current favorite game of its kind.
Nothing accentuates the nature of the game better than Smushi’s mushroom journal. Their personality and view of nature are so refreshingly bright and naïve without feeling mindless. Far from it, the curiosity is infectious, and extends to every facet of Smushi Come Home. Without a sour moment in sight, this mushroom’s adventure is a mush play.
Mateusz played Smushi Come Home on PC with his own bought copy. Smushi Come Home is also available on the Nintendo Switch.
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