Reviews:
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A mix of old-school point-and-click adventure beats mix with modern productions values and polish to make for a good time
There’s no doubt that, perhaps a bit surprisingly, that point-and-click adventures are one of the deepest subgenres represented on the Switch, resurgent after nearly disappearing at several points. Among them, I will say that Crowns and Pawns may be one of the best produced, featuring clean and attractive characters and animations as well as extensive and well-handled voice work. While those are certainly great qualities to have, without the core game experience being up to the same standard there’s only so far those can only get you so far though. So, how does Crowns and Pawns stack up in terms of the narrative, humor, and puzzle-solving that are core to the classic adventure experience? I’d say more middle of the road overall. The dialogue at least tends to show some wit, though perhaps not as much as some of its competition, and the puzzles tend to be in a sweet enough spot by needing to be pondered without seeming to be unfair. I would say that perhaps in some cases there are too many in the same space, making you walk around the same area trying to work things out and feeling a bit more stale, but on the whole it’s still a solid experience. If you’re a big fan of the subgenre this may not be a clear home run but it plays well and gets enough right to be a good time.
Justin Nation, Score:Nindie Choice! [8.0]