[Review] It’s Spring Again – Nintendo Switch

Reviewed by Kieran

Developer: Baba Yaga Games
Publisher: Sometimes You
Category: Educational
Release Date: 04.17.2018

Spring Forward

And it was. Almost immediately. Spring again that is.

I completed this game in around 10 minutes. I say game, in reality It’s Spring Again is an educational tool designed with the aim of teaching young children about the seasons.

And for that very reason, this title is an absolute marvel. I played it a few times on my own. I’ve played through it countless times with my young daughter and partner.

Controls

It’s spring again is only playable with touch controls. After all it is a port of a mobile title. But there really is no other way to play as you progress by interacting with the environment.

Presentation

By interacting with every aspect of the environment, the seasons pass, changing from spring, into summer then fall, and through into winter.

And then, It’s Spring Again.

The presentation of It’s Spring Again is absolutely beautiful. It is clear that it is a lovingly crafted piece of artistic media that shines in every department. The graphics are like a moving story book, vibrant and colourful, and utterly charming.

Music is important in any form of media, and It’s Spring Again is no exception. From sweeping harps to glockenspiels and xylophones, as flowers spurt into life or fruit falls from trees, every action is enriched by little tickles of music that accompany the actions like a perfectly paired wine.

While, It’s Spring Again is officially marketed at ages 2 and up, adults will appreciate the sheer joy of witnessing the seasons unfold in front of them. This is, in large, due to the level of attention in refining every little detail. In Spring, flowers will bloom, summer will bring fruit to the trees, fall offers beautiful autumnal colours and winter brings a crisp blanket of white snow.

Performance

During my dozen or so play throughs I had some minor issues as well as full blown crashes. On my 1^st play through, the game stopped on the titular It’s Spring Again message you receive after successfully navigating the seasons. My initial impression was that this was simply the end of the game. I waited a few minutes before deciding that I simply had to reset the game, which involved quitting to the Switch’s main menu, closing the title and re opening it.

However, after being handed the Switch by my partner after her 1^st play through, it became apparent that the game should in fact loop back into spring after winter and start the cycle over. After 2 more play throughs the cycle continued, confirming that the game did in fact, simply crash. On the 5^th play through the game again froze on this screen. Hopefully a patch will fix performance issues as the whole process of hard quitting was utterly exasperating.

Accessibility

As a parent, it was a real pleasure to be able to introduce my daughter to the world of gaming in such a pleasant and serine manner. Whilst she didn’t fully grasp the idea, the colours, sounds and movement captivated her attention. She did manage to move the clouds to reveal the sun, which brought a smile to her face. Which in turn brought one to mine too.

An excellent play mode available on It’s Spring Again is the auto play mode in which the game plays itself. This simply offers a visual story which was perfect for my 1 year old daughter. Instead of having to interact with the environment in order to progress, the game simply acts like an animation, telling the story of the seasons entirely on its own accord.

Fall back

Aside from some really niggling performance issues, I cannot recommend this title highly enough. For parents with young children, this is an utterly endearing piece of media that will simultaneously stimulate, educate and encourage your child to think and to problem solve.

The narration in the game is clear and coherent. The female voice is soothing and offers warmth that further envelopes you within the allure of this delightful little romp.

TL:DR

It’s Spring Again offers a serene experience that will educate and help develop young children. It may just leave grown adults feeling just a little bit better about life afterwards.