Ruffy and the Riverside is a spiritual successor to classic Rare titles with a fresh swapping mechanic that reinvents puzzle-solving in a vibrant, hand-drawn world.
Ruffy and the Riverside is one of the most creative 3D platform games to come out recently for the Nintendo Switch 2. Inspired by well-known games like Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64, Super Mario 64, and even Conker’s Bad Fur Day, it proudly shows its influence.
However, it goes its own way with a unique mechanic that lets you change the world around you. This independent game was made with a clear love for the spirit of adventure from the Rare era. It combines nostalgia with new ideas, creating a whimsical, storybook-like world that feels both familiar and refreshingly different.
The story is about Ruffy, a cute bear-like creature that looks a lot like an Ewok. He has to stop the bad cube Gro from destroying his home, Riverside. This scary cube looks like it could consume and destroy the whole world. To stop this, Ruffy needs to gather magical letters that will turn on the world core and save Riverside.
Along the way, you meet strange people like Pip, a sassy bee friend who lets you hover, and Sir Edler, an old mole who leads you by encouraging you in a clever way. The tone of the story is both lighthearted and serious, with lots of humor and charm that make you want to root for this unlikely hero.
The world is organized into a main area with smaller areas surrounding it, similar to Mario 64’s castle and paintings. This makes it fun to explore and find new things. The story is slowly revealed through collectibles and side quests, which give the world depth without giving too much information at once.
At its core, Ruffy and the Riverside is a 3D action-adventure platformer that puts a lot of emphasis on exploring, solving puzzles, and figuring out new ways to interact with the world around you. Ruffy’s unique ability to “swap” textures and materials in the world—taking on the color or texture of one object and sticking it on another—is the most interesting part of Ruffy and the Riverside.
You can change a waterfall into vines that you can climb, or stone pillars into wooden platforms that float. Besides that, there’s jumping, gliding with Pip, riding objects, and exploring the colorful world of the game. A large part of the experience is collecting things like coins, butterflies, and gemstones, so it entices you to explore.
You spend coins either on an upgrade to Ruffy’s health or on some costumes, so, in a way, it makes Ruffy and the Riverside customizable and also helps in proceeding. There is also a feature in Ruffy on the River called Pix It, through which you can change the color of selected parts of the world to something of your desire. This freedom to be creative, along with the swapping mechanic, makes exploring and solving puzzles very fun.
Puzzles are based on Ruffy’s ability to switch things around. You’ll face environmental challenges that require you to change the properties of things, like turning water into leaves that you can climb, changing stone for wood to make platforms that float, or making lava safe to walk on. These puzzles range from easy to hard, and you may have to try more than once to figure out how to solve them.
There isn’t much fighting, and it’s more about getting past obstacles in the environment than fighting enemies. Instead, the game is mostly puzzles and platforming challenges that test how well you can use the swap mechanic and move precisely.
The swapping mechanic is brilliant and new; it gives the old 3D platformer puzzle formula a new lease of life. It’s real satisfaction when you finally figure out a puzzle by creatively swapping pieces around. It makes you want to try new things and rewards your curiosity, which makes me think of the fun of finding new things in old Rare games.
However, some puzzles are less obvious, and if you don’t see the answer right away, it can be frustrating. There are times when Ruffy and the Riverside relies too much on repeated challenges, which can feel like filler or extra work.
Also, while the controls are responsive, they aren’t always accurate, which is noticeable during timing-based platforming sections. The checkpoint system can also be frustrating because it can send you back far enough that you have to solve puzzles or obstacles again that you have already figured out. This can break up the flow of Ruffy and the Riverside and make you tired of waiting.
The puzzle design as a whole is ambitious, but it’s not perfect. How much you enjoy something depends on how willing you are to try new things and keep going. In the usual sense, XP is very little. Instead, you move forward by collecting coins and items that let you improve Ruffy’s health and make changes to how he looks.
This system is small and doesn’t get in the way, which fits with Ruffy and the Riverside‘s focus on exploration over grinding. You can buy puzzle hints or shortcuts with coins, which is a nice touch that lets you get through harder parts without getting too frustrated. This design strikes a good balance between difficulty and ease of use, letting you play at your own pace.
Ruffy and the Riverside is beautiful to look at. The world is drawn by hand in a bright, detailed style that looks like a picture from a storybook. Simple geometric backgrounds with clean lines and cute character animations make the bright colors stand out. Ruffy has a lot of personality, and you can see it in the way his cape flaps and the way he moves.
The animation quality and detailed environmental effects make the game look better all around. This drawing style not only sets a warm mood but also works well with the swapping mechanic, making changes in color and texture look good and have an effect.
The music is a tribute to early Rare composers, with catchy, layered melodies that fit Riverside’s whimsical mood perfectly. It’s catchy and memorable without getting boring, which makes both exploring and solving puzzles more fun. There are a lot of silly and fun sound effects in Ruffy and the Riverside, like Ruffy’s happy dance moves and Pip’s buzzing, which add to its charm and humor.
The voice acting isn’t very strong, but it’s done well, giving the characters personality without taking away from the game. There is humor and wit in the writing, but the tutorial can get a bit wordy at times.
With the addition of a new clever twist, Ruffy and the Riverside is a very heartfelt love letter to classic 3D platform games. Its distinct swapping mechanic changes the way you interact with puzzles and the surroundings, creating moments of sheer joy and a lot of creative problem-solving. Whimsical music and hand-drawn visuals hark back to days past while laying the foundations for a world of charm on its own.
That said, however, Ruffy and the Riverside does have its share of flaws. Repetitive puzzles, tedious controls, and an overly strict checkpoint system can spoil one’s experience. Still, Ruffy offers a fun and rewarding journey for those who love the genre and players who enjoy unique mechanics.
It promises hours of exploration and discovery thanks to its large amount of content, collectibles, and customization options. Ruffy and the Riverside is a great platformer game that will make you smile and think in new ways, whether you remember how much fun they were on the N64 or are new to this style of game.
