Ooblets Review

What do farming, funk, and a fish-with-legs all have in common? Why, Ooblets of course! Originally released for PC and Xbox in July 2020 it has been a long time coming, but finally, Nintendo Switch owners can get their hands on this quaint little game from developer Glumberland.

Ooblets is an adventure, simulation, and role-playing game where you’ve decided to leave the big city and make the boat trip to the little town of Oob, a place full of little creatures called Ooblets that love to dance and help with various farm-related tasks. 

After arriving on the island, and being shown to your extremely run-down farm (what did you expect, it’s free after all), you are given a couple of beginner farming tools and a few seeds. From there you can live your new life on Oob at your own pace: make friends with villagers, grow and befriend all kinds of Ooblets, and farm to your heart’s content.

In keeping with farming-sim game tradition, as you progress through the game you’ll be asked to help out around the town and complete quests for the mayor. Send shipments of your crops, help clear out naughty Ooblets from government buildings, and fix everyone’s broken machinery. All the while you’ll be expanding your farm, upgrading your house, and dancing fantastically to the various rhythms of Oob.

Gameplay consists of two main elements: farming and dance battles. Farming feels very intuitive and easy, simply press RT to enter farming mode and a handy grid will pop up allowing you to hoe, water, and harvest crops easily. As well, you’ll eventually gain access to all kinds of blueprints to create helpful tools and decor for your home and farm; such as building sidewalks that allow you to run around your farm without using stamina or creating sprinklers to keep your plants watered and happy. 

The other major gameplay element comes in the form of Ooblet dance battles. No one really knows why, but Ooblets love to dance. When you encounter a group of wild Ooblets you can approach them and – should you have the right materials – you can challenge them to a dance battle. These dances are a card battle game, with each Ooblet having its own special cards and moves to help you during a deck-building dance-off. This gives the game a lot of interesting customization when deciding which Ooblets you want to have on your team. Winning a dance battle against a pack of wild Ooblets will have the opposing dance-captain offer you a seed. Accept this seed and you can grow your own Ooblet friend!

Arguably the best part of the game is all of the adorable Ooblets to befriend and collect. Each Ooblet has three varieties: common, uncommon, and shiny. Trying to “catch ‘em all” as it were is another one of the game’s simple pleasures. 

At first, players will only be able to explore the little town of Oob, helping out and making friends. As you progress, you’ll unlock transport to other areas as well, subsequently unlocking more things to do, people to see, and Ooblets to befriend. There are plenty of worthwhile activities here for almost every type of gamer.

The graphics are lovely, and Ooblets definitely has its own unique artistic style. Everything is awash in pastel colours, adorable names, and a charming kookiness that simply warms the heart. Your farm isn’t growing boring old vegetables like beets and carrots, no no, instead you’re planting sweetiebeeties and caroots. 

Even though the game’s arrival on Switch comes two years after its release on PC, you can tell the developers took the time to make sure the game would work on Nintendo’s beloved handheld hybrid. The gameplay is smooth, there’s no lag, and the load times are minimal. 

The music is excellent as well, as it should be when one of the core gameplay mechanics is a dance battle. There are plenty of different musical scores to keep your ears entertained as you play. And there’s enough musical variety that the dance battles never sound stagnant. 

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any better, it turns out you can also (eventually) run your own little shop in Oob where you can sell your goods to the rest of the town. There are also many options to upgrade and customize your farm and house. Buy furniture from the local shops, expand your home, and design your dream farmhouse. 

All in all, Ooblets is an absolute delight to play. It gripped the hearts of gamers on social media two years ago, and it’s making a comeback again with the Switch release. With so many cute Ooblets to befriend and collect, it’s no surprise that the merchandising opportunities are through the roof. From plushies to fan art, the Ooblets have taken over yet again, and for good reason.

This game overflows with silly quirkiness and charm. If you are a fan of farming-sims, or creature collection games (like Pokemon), you’re going to want to pick this one up. Combine that with great music, eye-pleasing graphics, and smooth gameplay, and you have a game that’s worth spending your hard-earned pennies and pounds on.