When I started playing Raccoo Venture, I thought I’d stumbled across some hidden 3D platforming gem. While its Steam store page goes heavy on the ‘90s comparisons, in a lot of ways it reminded me of a game like Super Mario 3D Land/World – and not just because if you squint just right, Raccoo Venture’s hero could look like a certain plumber in a tanooki suit.
By the end of my time with Raccoo Venture, though, I didn’t feel the same way. I wouldn’t say I hated it, but I also wouldn’t say that it felt like an underrated masterpiece.
This comes down entirely to the fact that the further into the game you get, the more it feels like you’re fighting with the game itself to have a fun experience. There are lots of moments where Raccoo Venture wants you to explore hidden areas and find special items, but it barely lets you see where you’re going – and with a fixed camera, you’re stuck with that view. While you can mostly see where you’re going, you can’t always, and it happens just enough that it spoils the experience a little.
Likewise, for a 3D platformer, Raccoo Venture has a real problem with platforming. Specifically, the jumping is a little too imprecise. At first it doesn’t seem like a huge issue, since the game seems like its levels aren’t laid out in a way that requires a lot of precise jumps, but again, the further in you get, the more demanding the game is, and the tools it gives you aren’t quite there. It’s tough to gauge precise jumps when you can’t use things like shadows to guide you, and our raccoon hero doesn’t cast enough of a shadow to allow you to do what the game wants you to do.
Raccoo Venture isn’t too far off from being a good game, though. It’s got varied levels, plenty of treasures to collect, and visuals that are very easy on the eyes – which isn’t always the case when we’re talking about games that look to the ‘90s and the blocky look that typified so many of those early 3D games.
But the more you play, the more it feels like Raccoo Venture misses the mark just enough to make it feel like a bit of a letdown. It’s a solid game, but with a few tweaks it could’ve been a lot more.
QUByte Interactive provided us with a Raccoo Venture PC code for review purposes.
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