Ruffy and the Riverside – Platformer that will impress you

• DEVELOPER: Zockrates Laboratories
• PUBLISHER: Phiphen Games
• PLATFORMS: PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
• GENRE: Platformer
• RELEASE DATE: June 26, 2025
• STARTING PRICE: 19,99€
• REVIEWED VERSION: PC

Having played the demo of Ruffy and the Riverside at Steam Next Fest earlier this year, I had high expectations for the full version. The inspiration is clear: Paper Mario with hints of Banjo-Kazooie and Super Mario 64 as the icing on the cake. However, this game brings something truly unique to the genre: a magical “SWAP” ability to copy and paste textures around you. Should everyone be playing it right now? Yes and no. However, it uniquely blends collectathon platforming, puzzle-solving, and free-form exploration in a semi-open world, ensuring you’ll keep playing long after the main story ends.

The game follows Ruffy as he teams up with friends like Pip the bee and Sir Eddler the mole to stop the villainous cube Groll from destroying the World Core and plunging Riverside into chaos. I have to be honest: there’s too much pointless dialogue. The characters ramble endlessly about everything, and I’m not ashamed to admit I skipped half of it without missing anything important.

Puzzles throughout the game use the SWAP ability

The SWAP Ability lets you copy a texture from one surface and paste it onto another, transforming the target. Eligible surfaces are highlighted, and you have about 15 seconds to use a copied texture before it vanishes. This mechanic is vital for puzzles and progression, for example, swapping a waterfall with vines creates a climbable path, or turning a stone pillar into wood makes it float. The ability evolves later with the “Pix” tool, allowing custom texture design for both aesthetic and functional purposes.

The main campaign of Ruffy and the Riverside unfolds across a central hub, Riverside, and seven distinct regions. Each area is filled with puzzles, side quests, and collectibles such as butterflies, dreamstones, Etoi creatures, and coins. The moment I realized we have the freedom to explore the map, I happily spent 30 minutes just exploring the first region.

The puzzles vary greatly, from simple tasks like swapping water with lava to burn a tree, to arranging precise stone patterns based on wall images. You might find Etoi hidden behind a wall, requiring you to transform a stone block into wood to breach the area. There’s even an entire puzzle section imprinted as 2D on a 3D wall, accessible via a portal that itself needs a puzzle to be solved. This type of gameplay will follow you through all regions, and you’ll find yourself spending 30-45 minutes exploring each area, which is definitely a lot of fun.

However, not every puzzle is straightforward or easy. You’ll definitely need to think more, and it can become frustrating, as solutions are often found by observing your surroundings. This is partly because the game doesn’t always clearly indicate when you can use the SWAP ability with certain platforms, and these opportunities aren’t always obvious. The SWAP ability also isn’t entirely flexible; you can only use it in designated spots meant for progression, collectibles or on elements that won’t break the game.

Exploration in the game offers many interesting ideas

Despite some drawbacks, exploration in Ruffy and the Riverside offers plenty of fun. Imagine riding a giant ice ball across the sea or atop a bale to win a race. The game also features dynamic shifts, reminiscent of Nikoderiko, like transitioning from 3D to 2D to dodge traps in a temple by hiding from rolling balls and leaping over spikes. In the Realm of Dead, for example, there’s a top-down section where you run from a ghost. The game truly introduces some interesting ideas and worth mentioning is the Buried City areas that combine multiple mechanics.

Ruffy’s moveset includes jumps, gliding with Pip, punches, spin attacks, and sprints, controlled via joystick or keyboard. While gliding and sprinting help travelling, their limited stamina requires coin upgrades. Combat is rather average; enemies pose little threat, and types are repeated. Given that combat isn’t a major focus, the game would have been better as a pure platformer filled with collectibles and puzzles. Boss fights don’t happen often and offer minimal challenge and usually feature predictable attack patterns and segmented health bars. The SWAP mechanic is also underused in combat.

The graphics are truly impressive

Ruffy and the Riverside ties progression to main quests and side content, with collectibles naturally appearing as you advance. While its collectathon structure rewards completionists, some collectibles like Etoi feel less impactful without specific quests, and coins become redundant after early upgrades. If you love collecting and puzzles, this game offers a satisfying experience. Expect about 10 hours for the main story, but around 20 hours to complete the entire game.

The graphics are impressive; just standing on a high hill overlooking the plains and buildings reveals the game’s detail and optimization. There’s an insane amount of content spread across regions, including beaches, farms, and graveyards, while characters like Ruffy and Pip are 2D sprites with thick marker strokes, animated with crayon-like charm.

A solid platformer with its strengths and weaknesses

The game definitely has its charm, especially in its humor and plot. There are moments where it genuinely feels like playing an old cartoon. While I admittedly skipped a lot of the dialogue, I grew quite fond of Sirsil the snake. Reaching the highest point of Riverside and playing barrel games, like riding one over a waterfall or jumping from barrel to barrel, was a surprisingly interesting part of the experience. Honestly, the game truly surprises you with these moments.

Another drawback worth mentioning are the controls. If you’re planning to play with a keyboard, forget about it — it’s not intuitive and quite difficult to manage. A controller is your best option. I’m still surprised how challenging it is to navigate the various cluttered menus, an issue that hasn’t been fixed since the demo. In the end, you won’t be entirely let down by this game. Is it perfect for everyone? Sure, if you can overlook some shallow mechanics and tolerate irrelevant dialogue. But if you enjoy collecting items and want a chill gaming experience, this game is definitely for you.

Review copy provided by the publisher

3.8