[Review] Merrily Perilly - Nintendo Switch

Developed By: Squiddershins
Published By: Top Hat Studios
Categories: Survival
Release Date: 06.30.21

Perry is in crisis, or peril rather. Man is he thirsty. But then as soon as he gets water, a snake bites him! We finally can get some anti-venom…but then he really has to go to the bathroom. Uh oh, you didn’t find a toilet in time and Perry soiled himself. Whoops.

In Merrily Perilly, you play as a man named Perry, going into this new town constantly having issue after issue. You can solve your current problem, but then it’s just gonna create a new one. Perhaps maybe you’ll keep cycling though these problems. The goal is to end them, and this can be either hard, or surprisingly simple. Protip: Dracula hates bees. Not just that, there’s a bald fellow, you should find these hats for him and climb on up. Each problem you get could possibly even open up other places or opportunities to you. If your head ever catches fire, maybe walk into some unlit torches.

Most of the people you talk to in the game are worthless, just there to waste time. You are on a timer for everything, and when that hits zero, you pass out. Some of the characters you speak you often can just cause new issues for you. Why did that Mermaid just pepper spray me? I can’t see and if I rinse out my eyes, I’ll just get bit!

Merrily Perilly is a highly replayable game and considering each problem and solution, with the problems they cause get mapped out for you in the Crisis Log, it also incentivises experimenting. Talk to everyone with everything that happens to Perry, you could find something new.

I love the simple artstyle and character designs. It’s colorful, but doesn’t seem to saccharine or sweet. The music is good too and I love how fast and frantic it gets when your time is running out.

While it’s not deep, nor is it exactly a long game, I had a lot of fun with Merrily Perilly. I really had issues putting it down, trying to figure out everything run by run. The achievements are pretty funny and clever too, with one even referencing the game “Don’t Shit Your Pants”.