Developer: Caligari Games
Publisher: WhisperGames
Platform: PC, Switch, PS4, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Tested on: Switch
Whateverland (Switch) – Review
A while ago, we already covered Whateverland. This point-and-click game by established Spanish developer Caligari Games has an interesting premise and some fun gameplay mechanics we don’t often see in this genre. Since its initial release, the game has seen an update that fixes bugs and is now ported to the Switch and other consoles, where we’ll be reviewing it today. It’s once again time to set off into this strange, confusing land and see if we deserve our freedom or need to wander forever.
Story
Whateverland opens with an interesting animated cutscene that instantly sets the tone for this macabre, slightly whacky adventure. The main character is Vincent, a petty burglar who tries to steal a valuable necklace for some quick cash. Sadly, he’s caught by the witch who owns said necklace and he is cursed by her to get stuck in the strange world known as Whateverland. It’s up to Vincent to find a way out while interacting with all the other people who have crossed the witch Beatrice before.
The game uses an interesting take on choice-based storytelling where every puzzle has multiple resolutions and you can decide for yourself how Vincent interacts with the other characters and the world around him. You can even choose what his motivations were for stealing the necklace in the first place. This unique touch means the game has more replay value and the story certainly feels different depending on your approach.
Graphics
Whether you like the art style of this game is probably pretty subjective, since it has a very distinct look to it. The traditional style is nice and we love to see it utilized in video games, though the Tim Burton inspiration could be hit or miss with some people. It looks at its best when you’re taking in the interesting, sometimes creepy environments around Whateverland and the character designs of the peculiar folks you meet. The animation can be a touch rougher, with stilted movements. Overall though, we find it hits more often than it misses.
Sound
Similarly, the sound design for Whateverland can be a bit ‘all over the place’. The game is fully voice-acted, which is a nice touch. As we mentioned in our original review though, the voice actors are probably not native English speakers and even if they are, there’s a mix-match of quirky accents present in the game. The result can be that some of the dialogue is delivered rather oddly. Pretty quickly, we started to just skip through voice lines and read the text boxes instead. The soundtrack itself is enjoyable enough, fitting the atmosphere of the game by being rather strange and discordant but definitely not bad.
Gameplay
Whateverland is a point-and-click adventure that is riddled with hard puzzles and fun mini-games. Most of the gameplay is rather familiar to anybody who has ever played a point-and-click game before, with your character moving around the map, inspecting objects, and filling their inventory with all sorts of knick-knacks. You meet characters along the way and can interact with them through various dialogue trees. As mentioned, the puzzles in Whateverland can usually be solved in a lot of different ways. You can choose to manipulate, lie, and steal your way through this strange world and act selfishly whenever you can. Or you can opt to use conversations to look for compromise. Saving often is a good idea because the puzzles are quite hard and sometimes loading a previous save to try a new angle is your best bet.
Sprinkled into the game are a bunch of mini-games that are surprisingly fun. The rhythm game was a particular favorite, but in general, they’re just a great way to diversify the gameplay and keep player interest. Though it’s still a shame there is no way of playing these minigames without replaying the entire game. We are happy to report that the bugs seem to have been fixed and the game ran very smoothly on the Switch. On the other hand, the controls have gotten a bit more finicky with the cursor sometimes not hovering over objects or Vincent not running when he was prompted to because the double-click didn’t work.
Overall, this game has a short runtime of just over three hours for a single playthrough, maybe four if you explore everything thoroughly. Aside from the non-linear way of puzzle solving, you have a few different endings so you can replay the game if you want, especially if you’re the type of person who cares about gathering all the achievements.
Conclusion
Whateverland might not blow us away completely, it’s still an innovative and entertaining title from a small indie studio that dares to break the mold and try new things. The puzzles range from smart to annoying, but the minigames are a great touch so we’re not complaining. We’d gladly get lost in this world a few more times while waiting for whatever Caligari Games cooks up next.
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