Developer: Ogre Pixel
Publisher: Ogre Pixel
Platform: PC, Mac, Linux, Switch
Tested on: Switch
A Tiny Sticker Tale – Review
Finding games that are good for a younger audience can be a whole challenge. Often when you want kids to learn something, it needs to be within their age limit, and obviously, they should have fun as well. Being able to enjoy the game together is often a big plus as well. A Tiny Sticker Tale is one of these games that, while not co-op, could be fun to play together. There’s a great tiny adventure waiting out there!
Story
The player takes control of a tiny adventuring donkey who sets out to an island with a magical blue sticker book. On the island, there are plenty of animals that need help with one thing or another! Some have simple requests, while others require a bit more effort to make them happy. Luckily, you have the power to help them with your magic sticker book that can transport the animals as well as objects to different locations. While you have this power, what you should be doing is not as clear as, let’s say, Dora the Explorer. You do have to go walk around and talk with island critters to figure out what’s going on or what you’re supposed to do. Other than a small introductory cutscene with no spoken words, you won’t get cinematic guidance.
Graphics
The graphics are appealing to a younger audience because the style as well as the animations are much like a morning show for kids. You won’t find any darkness in this game, just happy trees, colorful cartoon animals, and problems that need to be solved. While some of those problems are graphically very obvious by helping the player with a white outline of something that needs to be placed there, others are more challenging and need some experimentation before they get solved. This experimentation can make the game fun to play together (with an older sibling or parent), as figuring out what to do can be a task for multiple people. From that perspective, the graphics are helpful in making the game more educational and less obvious.
Sound
The soundtrack consists of simple and whimsical background tracks. The music is sometimes mysterious and the theme/instruments can slightly change depending on the area you find yourself in, but the music is always easy-going. Sound effects mostly consist of a few UI and popping sounds whenever you pick something up or place it down. There is no voice acting in the game, so reading the text from islanders in your own voice is all you’re going to get.
Gameplay
A Tiny Sticker Tale is a really straightforward puzzle adventure game. The player has a magic sticker book that they can use to put a couple of objects and NPCs in. Objects such as trees, buckets, but also entire bridges, can all be placed in an inventory that’s free for you to manage however you see fit. There’s enough room to bring a lot with you, but it’s not unlimited. The player can then place these items in different areas as they see fit. By doing so, they can solve puzzles that are often simple but require interactions between objects, or objects with the world. As said before, some puzzles are more challenging than others.
This mechanic makes the player feel like they are in control of a world, which is why it’s also nice that at some point there’s an antagonist introduced that has exactly the same power. This way the player feels like they do not only get to interact with others to solve their issues, but also with somebody who is “equal” to them, even though the antagonist acts a lot like a more advanced Swiper the Fox from Dora the Explorer. Your progress often gets hindered by your buddy with the same powers, and this is what truly makes him annoying and connected to the player.
The game is not incredibly long, and that’s quite alright. You could finish it in an hour or two if you wanted to, depending on the age and skill level of the player, and depending if you want to lose more time by collecting stuff such as new outfits for your character. The bigger downside is that the sticker book mechanic is almost the only mechanic in the game. A little fresh breath of air would be quite nice during the game itself, but this is all that you’ll get. That being said, it’s one of the better “all-ages games” out there, and it’s not a bad one for your kids.
Conclusion
A Tiny Sticker Tale is a solid game for kids that can be played (together with kids) when you are older too. It’s a game about exploration and trying out new things, and it offers a couple of hours of fun in a cozy environment. Especially when you buy this for your young ones, it will probably be a success.
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