AntVentor is a point-and-click journey puzzler with a enjoyable little premise that works properly for the Swap. The sport introduces the principle character, Florentine, who’s lots like Flick from the Disney film “A Bug’s Life”. Florentine is an ant inventor who would love nothing greater than to construct innovations that make his life within the colony a lot simpler.
As you navigate the anthill—and the skin world—you uncover new objects you’ll be able to accumulate to mix and make new innovations or assist you by obstacles. It jogged my memory of most traditional point-and-click titles, particularly these centered round escape rooms or mysteries. Equally to these classics, AntVentor has a singular stylized look to its insect characters, however the world itself is photo-realistic and intriguing!
AntVentor balances the challenges within the recreation decently between troublesome and simple. Nonetheless, the sport itself doesn’t do a lot that will help you alongside. There’s an choice for clues and hints—which you’ll be able to set off with Y or will randomly seem as a thought bubble over Florentine. However the clues felt as if they had been producing randomly. Not all of them utilized to the situation I used to be in, and a few of them simply didn’t provide sufficient to grasp what I used to be doing mistaken. It wasn’t till I used to be virtually out of the anthill that I bought any kind of precise clue that was useful, and I bought caught as soon as once more the second I used to be exterior.
AntVentor opens with narration and feels storybook-esque in the best way it zooms into Florentine’s macroworld. However the remainder of the sport is devoid of precise dialog all through nearly all of the gameplay. I didn’t even see any textual content on the display screen. The dearth of dialog made these triggered hints a bit troublesome to decipher if the photographs weren’t clear. Whereas the simplistic communication fashion added to the problem, I discovered myself greater than as soon as having to sanity test myself on-line to ensure I didn’t miss one thing.
One different factor that I didn’t take care of was the dearth of controller range. The sport instantly disconnected my Professional Controller at launch and compelled me to make use of the Pleasure-Cons. Until I wish to use my larger tv for one thing else, my Pleasure-Cons are at all times throughout the room with my docked Swap. It’s a first-world downside, I do know, however having to stand up to disconnect them or utterly undock wasn’t actually an incredible expertise. I’m unsure why I appear to maintain discovering video games that power gamers to make use of the Pleasure-Cons, however the worth of the Professional Controller for my playstyle can’t be understated sufficient. There was nothing from the expertise of utilizing the Pleasure-Cons that I couldn’t get from my Professional Controller.
You should utilize the touchscreen whereas undocked, however the recreation didn’t do something inventive with the mechanic from what I noticed. AntVentor exists on different cellular and pill platforms, so enjoying on the Swap with contact controls doesn’t provide something distinctive to this port that doesn’t exist elsewhere. Nonetheless, if somebody might need mobility points, or favor the touchscreen controls, this is likely to be a plus for you!
With that mentioned, AntVentor was a enjoyable world to discover, and as soon as I spotted what I needed to do to get by a puzzle, it was enjoyable to place all of it collectively. Nonetheless, I do suppose due to the calming ambiance—even within the face of hazard for an ant—it made the sport really feel slower than it usually would have. This tempo is fairly commonplace for titles prefer it—if we maintain the comparability to flee room and thriller point-and-click video games. However I do want the music had been extra composed and peppy, or there had been extra dialog or intriguing interactions between Florentine and the remainder of the world.
Whereas AntVentor does lack dialog, the emoting noises that characters made had been humorous and managed to convey feelings with out a lot in the best way of over-the-top gesturing or phrases on the display screen. I at all times admire any type of story that may convey sufficient emotion and humor with simply small expressions and noises. I might see youngsters particularly appreciating Florentine’s foolish reactions to every thing.
Total, I do suppose AntVentor is definitely worth the time on the Swap. It’s charming and enjoyable whereas being a recreation that forces you to make use of your head. When you’re into puzzlers, I’ve a sense you’ll like this one—my minor gripes apart.
