When it comes to budget platformers or platforming adventures, there are actually loads of options out there on Switch, and many of them simply aren’t very good. Whether the issue is tired and simple play, sloppy controls, or simply setting the bar too low to be worth seriously considering, the more rare feat is to find one that’s at least decent. The good news is that they do exist, and that some of them are even able to brush up against the potential of being great, even if many simply settle into merely being some form of acceptable.

I’d say that Prehistoric Gal is somewhere in the middling tier, far from the pack that are among the worst, but also not clearly putting in the work to deserve greater attention. In terms of the controls, the game sort of helped itself out by simply not being very ambitious. You’ll be able to jump and attack, earn the ability to throw a weapon, and then periodically run around on the back of a dinosaur for fun. All that said, it’s all also very safe. At least the world you’re moving around in is pretty big and interconnected though. Rather than going the route of having stand-alone short stages to clear, here you’ll be exploring a pretty big space. 

I just wish you had a map right from the get-go to help navigate it all more efficiently, since it’s very easy to keep going in circles. For the most part, it’s simply also not very interesting or engaging, outside of perhaps the boss fights and some specific small areas. While there’s a lot of space to tromp around in, most of it is filled with the same pretty generic enemies and pedestrian platforming. While that may make it accessible to less seasoned gamers, it can also make for a pretty dull time in many spots.

The result is just a budget platformer that comes in at a solid “Meh”. It could absolutely be far worse, and I don’t mean to diminish what ambitions it does have, which help to set it apart from many titles that have practically none. All the same, it would be a disservice to gamers looking for honest opinions, to gloss over the fact that this is still miles away from being a good platformer in any particular way. It may not make for a bad option when it’s on sale, as long as you don’t mind settling for something less ambitious to work through.