[Review] Mekabolt - Nintendo Switch

Mekabolt
Nintendo Switch

Developed By: Somepx
Published By: Ratalaika Games
Category: Puzzle, Platformer
Release Date: 08/23/2019

A futuristic theme park has lost control of its main attractions and they must be stopped before they hurt someone. No, I’m not talking about Jurassic Park. I’m referring to Mekabolt, made by Eeve Somepx, in which you will navigate through more than 90 levels as you attempt to wrangle and get a handle on the pesky robots that have been causing a ruckus around the park. As a park technician, you need to collect a battery in each level to power the machine that will bring the robots back under control. Will you succeed, or should you start looking for a new job?

In Mekabolt you’re armed with a Mekabolt (gun) that can be used to control the various robots that are causing problems. The Mekabolt is going to be your main way of interacting and taking control of the robots, alongside jumping and pushing. Robots mostly turn on or off when you shoot them with the Mekabolt, but this opens up the possibility for further manipulation when you interact with them. You can push some into position to serve as platforms or trampolines, or create a new pathway by triggering a spear to be launched into a wall that can then be used to reach a previously inaccessible platform. The gameplay is very simple, and the puzzles rarely, if ever, provide any sort of mental challenge.

The instances it does become challenging are when it introduces situations when you can soft lock your progress in a puzzle and must restart the level. Destroying certain blocks too early in a sequence, for example, could destroy your stairway to the final section of a puzzle, and there is no way to respawn the blocks without restarting the level. It would be nice if walking to an off-screen portion of the level would regenerate the blocks. However, the levels (and game) are so short that it’s almost a trivial complaint.

You’ll go through a series of four worlds, each with unique aesthetics that introduce new puzzle elements. You start in the jungle, moving through the desert into the caves, and finally finish in the command center. They mainly serve as pallet swaps of the previous levels, so the differences between zones aesthetically aren’t very extreme. The robots are kind of cute, but lack personality in their animations, which is disappointing when you remember that this is supposed to be a fun theme park with the robots as the main attraction. The music is pleasantly upbeat and sounds like something you might hear on a cartoon.

The biggest complaint I can level against the game is that I see things I like in the game, but it stops short of making the most of its assets, and its level design. For a game made by one person, it’s a great first outing and hopefully, we can see Somepx create even more games and stretch his wings creatively. If you need a game to kill some time, you can do much worse than Mekabolt, but you aren’t going to find much reason to go back to it. There are no secrets or collectibles to unlock, so be prepared for a one and done game. It could be a fantastic way to introduce children to puzzle platforming though as the simple puzzle design and aesthetic seem well suited for a younger audience.