Mighty Switch Force! 2 - Review

 Calling firefighter Wagon! The planet is on fire!

Console: Nintendo 3DS

A few weeks ago I took a look at Mighty Switch Force!, the first game in Way Forwards small-time puzzle-platformer series. I had fun with it. Enough that I didn't regret already  having bought its sequel during the final days of the 3DS Eshop. As I´m currently deep into the beast of a title that is The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, I was in the market for a small game that I can finish quickly so the game revies won't dry up here on the old blog. Seemed like as good a time as any to jump back into the series with this sequel. 

So, how does Way Forward's second go at this formula stack up? Let's dive in.

This go-around, Officer Patricia Wagon has traded her police uniform for that of a firefighter. An explosion has set 'Plant Land' ablaze, trapping the reformed Hooligan Sisters (good for them!) within the inferno. Using her trusty Siren Helmet as well as her brand new fire hose, the Infinity Dousing Apparatus, it's once again up to Patricia to save the day. 

Once again the game's narrative is simple and to the point. Only there to provide the game's setup. To give the world all these levels are set in some flavour and nothing more. Since I didn't go into the game expecting more this time around I will simply say that I wish there was a bit more since Way Forward is always so good at writing fun and witty dialogue and just simply moving on to the gameplay. 

Said gameplay is the same as the original. The goal is to find and rescue all 5 Hooligan Sisters through running, jumping, shooting and solving block/dimensional-based puzzles while taking down or avoiding enemies. All on a timer and with 3 lives per level, of course. 

Those blocks are where the titular 'Switch' is taken from. All across each of the 16 levels, or 'incidents', are all kinds of blocks that you can push in or pull out with the press of a button to create pathways and keep moving towards your goal. Be careful with this mechanic though: everything in front of a block will get launched towards the screen and be taken out, including Patricia. The effect is fun, the enemies 'crack the screen' so to speak but you don't want to get caught in it yourself! It's straight back to your last checkpoint or, if it was your last life, back to the level select screen. 

These blocks come in a variety of flavours. The standard 'push-pull out' to blocks that launch you forward to blocks that you can 'lock' from getting pushed back in when you stand on them. For this latest variety, this game introduces a third colour block so the game can throw you even more difficult puzzles with this mechanic. Also new are all the fire-based effects. From blocks that you have to spray with water to temporarily douse the flames so you can stand on them to blocks that bend the path of your water hose so you can shoot around the corner.

A quick look at one of the puzzles.

When it comes to the design of the puzzles there's one big difference between Mighty Switch Force! and its sequel. Where with the original the challenge lay more with executing the solution to your current conundrum, the timing of your jumps, its sequel puts more emphasis on figuring out the solution. With its extra mechanics, the puzzles have more layers to them teasing your brain more. You still have sections that are more skill based but they were noticeably less of these moments. It puts the focus more on your mind than your reflexes is what sums it up best. I enjoyed this approach. It made the game, to me at least, a lot less frustrating and thus more fun. People with better timing and reflexes might disagree with me though. 

I am disappointed though by the lack of variety. Each level is well designed from a gameplay standpoint but their aesthetic leave something to be desired. The graphics, animations, sprite work and soundtrack look and sound good but the aesthetic of each level is roughly the same. The backgrounds might be different and the bricks might have different colours, but they all blended together for me. Only the last 2 levels stand out to me. The first with its neon outlines and the latter due to its unique mechanic, automatic block switching, and its boss battle at the end.  

A welcoming addition is that we actually have a collectable in the game. There's this 'USB Baby' hidden throughout each level that you can nab, if you can find it, to satisfy your collectable and completionist urges. I talked about in my review of the original how I felt a collectable could make the game better, and give it more replay value outside of speedrunning, so I'm happy that WayForward addressed it. 

It's ironic then, that when all is said and done, Mighty Switch Force 2! has about the same length as the original. The 'USB Baby' adds some replay value but since this game lacks the bonus levels of the original, when it's all said and done, both games take about the same time to complete. 

Conclusion

If you liked Mighty Switch Force!, you'll like Mighty Switch Force! 2 as well. It's a less challenging but more in-depth puzzle-platformer with more replay value thanks to the addition of a collectabe. It does most things better than its predecessor, or at the very least just as good at it. It has fewer overall levels and aesthetically all of them blend together but I don't find either of them to be a big deal. The title still looks great and you get more than enough bang for your buck. If you've never played a Mighty Switch Force! title before, this is the one I recommend you start with. 

While it's no longer available on the 3DS, you can still get it on Steam and on PS4/5 and Switch through the Mighty Switch Force! Collection alongside its predecessor.