Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland
Preview
Throwback, for what?
EA SCOUT the last line of defense for buying on Steam's Early Access
by Jordan Helsley
previewed on PC
When I think of a retro-inspired platformer I tend to key in on the difficulty of it all. Games used to be hard, especially before you could save. The first two levels of Adventures in Gameland are far from that: they're confusingly easy, but maybe that's the point. No matter which of the four "core" babies you pick, you're jumping, butt-stomping, and throwing your way through the equivalent of Mario 2's 1-1, slowly being introduced to the rudimentary requirements the game seems to have in store for you. I think this is exacerbated by the second preview level, which is presented in a way that implies it appears later in the game, introducing new mechanics and showing you the initially obscure rules around what can and cannot be jumped on and through. It is all topped off with a boss that is reminiscent of classic games while infusing a classic episode of the show, but again fails to find the difficulty (and for some reason forces the aspect ratio to change). Difficulty aside, I found little in the way of discovery, puzzles, or any other form of engagement. Something as simple as a collectible would have gone a long way to break up the monotony of the gameplay. It's hard not to see the simplistic nature of the game as a negative when we're dealing with a property that hasn't been relevant for at least 20 years, and has a Limited Run release forthcoming on an NES cart.
You can't argue with the presentation, though. Classic title cards, faithful renditions of characters and settings, and dynamic graphics and aspect ratio modes including 8-bit options all inform the fact that a large amount of care was put into this product. The music stands out above the rest as not only genuinely good, but evocative of the original series and its pervasive style, which begs further questions. Is this a game made to act as a nostalgic time capsule and nothing more? It does conjure feelings of playing Aladdin on the Genesis, only this time I can see myself beating it. Or, perhaps more damningly, is it an example of developers underestimating the ability of children in 2024, a problem I thought we moved past a generation ago? I'm leaning towards the former.
There's a large list of classic games that Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland is reminiscent of, but I feel that too many punches were pulled to create something that stacks up against other contemporary revivals. If taken as a leisurely jaunt through a cartoon of your childhood, it's probably just fine, depending on the price. As a game, devoid of any nostalgia or IP understanding, it fails to be compelling. With such a small slice (though there seems to be a hint early on that indicates it's a larger piece than it might appear) it's impossible to speak definitely, so the best you can do is keep your eyes on it and decide, upon release or at the very least a price reveal, whether Rugrats is a property you truly need to go back to.
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The game has potential, but we're not ready to jump in with both feet. If the game interests you, look, but don't touch - yet.
