QV review for Nintendo Switch

Don?t be fooled by the whole anime vibe that covers QV?s eShop page. Despite the magical, wide-eyed na?f, the anthropomorphized penguin, and the talk of chosen ones and multiple dimensions, when you get right down to it, this is basically just an isometric puzzle-platformer — and a pretty decent one at that.

Of course, I don?t want to downplay the aesthetic entirely. It?s certainly a part of the game, and the odd bits of dialogue here and there contribute to it. If you?re the type who likes girls and penguins engaging in cutesy dialogue, then this game will deliver on that front.

It?s just that QV delivers a lot more if you?re the type who enjoys games like Captain Toad Treasure Tracker, Lumo, or Mekorama. The puzzles here are enjoyably difficult, and they ramp up in difficulty quickly enough that you don?t feel like you?re just doing the same thing over and over again — they may start as a simple exercise in walking (slowly) from point A to Point B, but it?s not long until you?re pushing boxes and creating shortcuts from one part of a level to another. On top of that, the game helpfully colour codes the different dimensions, so that even if the basic gameplay doesn?t change all that much, the levels look and feel tangibly different from each other.

Obviously, there?s nothing groundbreaking going on here, and despite the talk of Chosen Ones saving the world, QV never feels all that weighty. But it doesn?t really need to. It?s a simple puzzle game that offers a few hours of fun, and sometimes that?s all you need.

CFK provided us with a QV Switch code for review purposes.