LOVE review for Nintendo Switch

So here?s LOVE from Fred Wood, and if you?re like me then it?s a game you?ve never even heard of until a recent Nintendo Direct showed it off for the Switch. But if you?re also like me then you were probably very curious about the very retro-inspired visuals and platforming action. So when we had a chance to check it out it was one we took!

In a nutshell this is a simple and short2D platformer that Fred worked on while taking some networking classes. The game actually includes this information in a menu option and also explains that the name LOVE comes from his love of the genre. And you know what I think I believe him.

The gameplay takes a couple minutes to get used to as the jumping feels different from what you might be used to. You control a little Atari 2600 looking guy who handles well but also feels like he has a heavy backpack or something strapped to him. Heavy like it?s filled with lots of books to help him study when he finally gets home!

Once you get a handle on this the feel of the game plays just right for how it?s designed. You?ll feel like deaths are fair and most of the time could have been prevented if you didn?t freak out thinking about the challenges in front of you. And yes you will be dying a fair amount but the game gives you 100 lives to finish 16 levels. If that sounds like a lot of lives well it kind of is but you?ll want them for some trickier parts that involve more trial and error.

You can also finish the game easily in one sitting. Maybe even sooner than it takes to read this review! But it offers lots of other ways to play including a YOLO mode which only gives one life and a speed run which puts you up against the clock instead of number of tries. So all this is self-explanatory but it?s worth mentioning that there?s additional stuff beyond the main game.

You can also get into some additional levels in Remix or Kuso modes which provide new challenges. I think my only nitpicks might be with the buttons on the joy-cons not always registering my jumps, which isn?t too big a deal if you?re playing just for fun but more serious players might want to try a pro controller or something more reliable. I have no idea why this is since the joy-con face buttons work fine in other games with no press misses.

So besides the fun challenge it?s worth mentioning that this game is just three bucks. And it?s not a budget price for a budget game because I found myself continuing to dig around after having my fun with the main challenge.

It?s also worth mentioning that the music by James Bennett is really good. Better than it usually would be for a small game like this, and I found myself listening to some of these tracks outside of the game after playing.

Overall if you like the aesthetic and want to spend an afternoon or more with a great little platformer then you can?t go wrong with LOVE. It?s a very attractive price and you get a unique game that you?d actually come back to now and then.

Note: Mokuzai Studio provided us with a LOVE Nintendo Switch code for review purposes.