Bluey’s Quest for The Gold Pen review for Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation, Xbox, PC

When you bring the tv show Bluey up in conversation amongst adults there is a strange thing that happens. Either someone mentions that their kid, cousin’s kid, neighbor’s kid, etc. is obsessed with Bluey OR there is an adult saying something like they somehow got sucked into an episode… or seven. Even childless adults. That’s me. I’m the problem that adult.

I love cozy games, platformer games, and puzzle games so I thought I’d like Bluey’s Quest for The Gold Pen. Did I? Let’s find out.

It’s a rainy day and Mom, Dad, and the two sisters, Bingo and Bluey, are at the table drawing with pens. Bluey ends up needing the gold pen but.. what’s this?! DAD has the gold pen and he’s (playfully) not giving it up. And so, the story begins. Bluey and Bingo (Bingoose as she’s known in the game as she’s a goose) must explore different lands, collect beads, save small insects and creatures, find goose food for Bingoose to lay silver eggs and solve puzzles to win the gold pen. Mom shows up to help guide you to the end of each land, dad shows up as some funny and extremely light-hearted antagonists. (Where I learned in Australia it’s Scissors, Paper, Rock not Rock, Paper, Scissors!)

The world looks mostly hand-drawn with slightly colored-outside-of-the-line scenery, Bluey has sticks for arms and characters with overly large faces are some of the cutest details. It really sets the feel for the game and gives you the feel of childhood fun. If, as a child, you ever drew anything like your own rollercoaster or designed your own car you know what I mean.

The lands are actually quite big. I found myself using the map more than I thought I would. It was nice to have fast travel spots. (And I’ll be honest it was the only time Bingoose ever did anything, pointing out those post/signs) One thing I wish was different in regards to how big the worlds are is how slow Bluey walks. I found my thumb nearly going numb from pressing on the stick (as though I could make her go faster). The fast travel was a life saver- or rather a time saver in this regard.

Besides running over flowers to get beads, Bluey has a magic wand that shoots stars out short distances. Hit the A button to break boxes to find beads, zap crystals to make things happen with puzzles, etc. X in turn was her dig button and talk button. Dig up … you guessed it.. beads. Or talk to gnomes and help them out with their quests. Other buttons open up new abilities on different lands. I’ll leave those a mystery so you can experience that fun yourself.

Puzzles are challenging…enough. I do worry some kids may give up after a few times of trying on later lands. Yet I think most kids that like puzzles will figure them out. Depending on their age, a little encouragement and patience may go far. As for adults it seemed like it was a cozy-not-too-hard puzzle solving experience. Mostly getting the timing right was what I found I needed with the puzzles.

A few final thoughts on Bluey’s Quest for The Gold Pen; I do wish Bluey moved faster, there were more quests and more variety for set collection. (This would have fleshed out each land for me and made the game a bit longer.) Fans of all ages will like this game. Cozy childhood nostalgia for some adults, and a fun romp in Bluey’s world with puzzles, gnomes, and Mum and Dad for the kids.

Note: PM Studios/Radical Forge provided us with a Bluey’s Quest for The Gold Pen Switch 2 code for review purposes.

Click Here to buy/pre-order Bluey’s Quest for The Gold Pen on Amazon