[Review] Shu – Nintendo Switch

Shu
Nintendo Switch

Developed By : Coatsink Software
Published By : Coatsink Software
Category : Platformer, Action, Adventure, Arcade
Release Date : Jan 23, 2018

What do you do when the world is ending? Well, if you’re Shu, you try and outrun it! When a Storm swoops through and destroys Shu’s home village, and bringing on the start of the end of the world, Shu runs to escape and survive it. Along the way, Shu comes along a number of other survivors who, in exchange for Shu’s help, grant him special abilities to help all of them survive the storm.

Shu himself can’t do much, his limits peak at running, jumping and gliding. It’s the stranded villagers that you come across to save that really bring out the limits of this game. On his own, Shu seems pretty “useless” for lack of a better term, but the game doesn’t throw any challenging paths at you when you’re on your own. Long gap to jump across? Just glide. High edge to reach? Find a bounce pad to shoot you up high enough.

The companions you meet, however, grant some really cool abilities that make Shu a lot of fun. With them, you’ll be able to walk across the water, wall jump, perform a ground pound, and even more moves.

Each world spans out over a few levels, with six worlds making up the entirety of the game (twenty-one individual levels). You’ll need to work your way to the end of each one, picking up whatever villagers you can along the way. There’s no combat either, so you’ll strictly be running : towards the end of the level, or from an approaching Storm.

No need to worry either about being stuck for a path. Shu offers in-level collectibles in the shape of butterflies. They’re plentiful, in the multiple hundreds per level, and are splayed out in sections that easily depict the path you need to take towards your goal. The abilities of your companions will greatly assist you, if you’re of the “must collect everything” gamer variety, but they offer nothing other than a score once you reach the end of a level, ranging from bronze to silver and gold depending on the percentage of these you collect. The only other collectible in the game are what’s called Babbies, which are birds. These are usually tucked away in harder to reach spots, or alternate pathways through the levels.

For the most part, Shu is a pretty casual-stroll of a game. The platforming sections can be a little tough at times, but you’ll stumble across plenty of checkpoints, each of which restocks your pile of lives (you’ll have five at your disposal). The most difficult part of the game comes from the games dashing sections. They only happen once or twice per world (not level), and will start with the screen flashing before a Storm entity emerges on the left side. What follows is generally a hectic section of platforming that doesn’t leave you much room for error. The Storm will be constantly moving in your direction and if you make even the tiniest of slip-ups, you’ll be back at the last checkpoint you passed.

If you’re looking for something to test you, Shu might not push you to your limits too much, but it’s still a lot of fun. This game is great if you’re just looking to toss a few hours into something. The levels are smooth and the art is extremely colorful, giving each world their own individual flavor. Again, it might not be much of a challenge, but it’s a great play and one that will most certainly be memorable.