Developer: Ocellus Studio
Publisher: Microids
Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Tested on: PC
The Smurfs – Dreams – Review
The Smurfs have been the pride and joy of Belgium since the 1950s, but sadly, after their all-time high popularity in the 80s, we haven’t seen that much of them over the last few decades. Of course, there was the live-action remake in 2011, with a sequel a few years after that, as well as the fully animated film in 2017, but the blue creatures never managed to get back on top of their game. In 2022, we also saw the release of Smurfs Kart, a Mario Kart clone, which has a few nice elements but ended up becoming yet another forgettable entry in the long-running franchise. To our surprise, we saw another game on the horizon, that one being The Smurfs – Dreams. We expected this to be another title that had to be released to retain videogame licenses, but the end result actually (pleasantly) surprised us.
Story
Gargamel’s antics have not diminished over the years, even though the Smurfs always outsmurf him. This time, however, he has come up with a new dastardly plan to capture all the Smurfs. The evil sorcerer has cast a spell on the sarsaparilla bushes, which is a local delicacy for the Smurfs. When eating the leaves, the Smurfs fall asleep and are unable to wake up themselves. Luckily, Papa Smurf and you have not been tempted by the tasty dish, and you’ll have to dive into the dreams of the sleeping Smurfs in order to wake them up. It’s a simple plot, but it works well enough for a title such as this. Sadly, the presentation could have been slightly better, as there are no real impressive cinematics or any real narration for that matter.
Graphics
Visually, The Smurfs – Dreams is one of the prettiest platforming titles out there. It’s also one of the first Smurfs titles that does the franchise justice. The game’s environments are varied and extremely colorful, and each new area has unique assets. Of course, a lot of assets are also reused throughout the different levels, but there is still enough visual variety to prevent things from growing stale. The character animations are also extremely fluid. Some cosmetics also add a bit of flair to the mix. Performance was also buttery smooth without any real visual glitches.
Sound
The sound design might be the most disappointing aspect of The Smurfs – Dreams. While the supporting soundtrack wasn’t bad at all, it also didn’t blow us away. We expected a few more earworms to stick with us after we turned the game off. The sound effects are also decently handled, but are nothing to write home about either. We found it a shame that the game didn’t have any voice acting. It would have been nice to have some narration or a bit of banter between the Smurfs.
Gameplay
The Smurfs – Dreams is a fairly traditional 3D platformer in which you play through short ‘dream’ levels to wake up the Smurfs who cannot. The offset is simple, as you just have to run and jump across platforms and obstacles, taking out the occasional enemy as well. At the end of most sets of levels, you’ll also have to defeat a boss. It’s a simple formula that has been done plenty of times before, but it just works well, especially thanks to how polished the entire experience is.
Aside from the traditional running and jumping mechanics, you can also extend your jump a tiny bit by pressing the jump button again. It’s somewhat similar to Yoshi’s small flutter jump in the Mario Bros series. You can also put yourself in a bubble, allowing you to float for a while, and you can then dash from said bubble. This is great when a platform disappears, allowing you to stay in place for a second longer to wait for it to reappear. These fundamental mechanics were very polished and intuitive, and before we knew it, we were easily avoiding obstacles and jumping from one platform to another. You can also wave to fellow Smurfs inside the dreams, perhaps revealing some invisible items. Outside of this, some levels also have some unique items for you to use, spicing up the gameplay even further.
Other than solid platforming and a generally pleasant gameplay loop, there isn’t too much more to say about The Smurfs – Dreams. You’ll have some collectibles in the levels that create some replay value, and some are actually needed to keep progressing through the game. With the collected currency and collectibles, you can also unlock a few new outfits, which is another reason to perhaps return to specific zones as well. Everything combined makes for a fairly standard platforming experience, but everything just feels highly polished. The only thing that is quite noticeable is that the game isn’t all that difficult, but this does make it ideal to play with a younger player via local co-op.
Conclusion
The Smurfs – Dreams is both a great platformer and a superb homage to The Smurfs, a franchise that has been fading into obscurity as of late. If you’re a fan of titles such as Super Mario 3D World, then The Smurfs – Dreams will certainly prove to be rather entertaining. While the game is not extremely difficult, it still has a few interesting challenges to offer, highly polished platforming action, and a cute story to motivate you to press onwards. All in all, The Smurfs – Dreams is a bite-sized platformer that not only nails its gameplay elements but also its visual presentation.
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