[Review] Excessive Trim – Nintendo Switch

Developed By: eastasiasoft, Panda Indie Studio
Published By: eastasiasoft
Category: Action, Shoot'em Up
Release Date: 11.08.23
Price: $4.99
*Game Download Code graciously provided for the purpose of review.

Excessive Trim is definitely an odd game. It’s a vertical side-scrolling action game that has similarities to Destroy All Humans with an art style that will remind some players of Undertale. The game itself is very simple. You take control of an alien tasked with killing everything in your path. As you fly in your UFO that’s been fitted with a buzzsaw, you cut down farmers, cows, and weeds while avoiding all sorts of obstacles.

It took me a while to actually figure out the game because there’s no tutorial at all, you’re thrown right into the game when you start. The first time I played, I ended up dying before I even managed to score a single point because I had no idea what I was doing. It took me two or three attempts before I realized what I was doing and even longer to get a good grasp of the gameplay and levels.

Each time you cut weeds or destroy certain other objects, you get a point that’s added to your total score. Once you run out of health, you crash and the game is over. There’s a level of randomness to the game because at the end of each level there’s a store that gives you the option to select an upgrade before proceeding to the next level. You’re only given three choices and they are selected from a pretty large pool so the upgrade you choose can be luck based.

For example there was one playthrough where I immediately got the upgrade that gives you a bigger saw after the first level. This made the game a lot easier because I didn’t have to focus on maneuvering as often and allowed me to progress much further and get a really high score. But there were other attempts where I kept getting mediocre upgrades so I would end up dying pretty early. Your skill obviously plays a big role but luck with these upgrades also plays a part.

Looking past the gameplay, there isn’t a lot else to talk about aside for the visuals. The game has a very simplistic yet really cool art style. The game is laid out in a black, white, and red art style with some interesting design choices. For example, when you’re doing your dash attack, the profile of the alien changes into one that’s very creepy and does a great job at making it look like a psychotic killer.

However, while the visuals look cool, the layout of the screen will become just a bit disorienting as the game picks up the pace after a few levels. There’s also an option to change the color palette and there are many variations to choose from.

Excessive Trim is a very repetitive game and will not appeal to everyone but at the $5 price point, you’re definitely going to get some value out of it and high score hunters will have something to look forward to each attempt. If you get a ridiculously high score right away, you may not feel motivated to keep playing though.

6/10