Ruffy And The Riverside: Preview

3d Platformer, april, demo, games, gaming, preview, ruffy, ruffy and the riverside, swap, video-games, zockrates labs

When I first covered Ruffy and the Riverside, its vibrant world and intriguing swap mechanic immediately caught my attention. I even had the chance to ask the team about its design and inspirations, which only made me more curious to see it in action. Now, after going hands-on early with the demo, I can confidently say that curiosity was well placed. Here is my Ruffy and the Riverside preview!

First off, talk about making a great first impression! The demo opens with a dramatic introduction"”Ruffy, his bee sidekick Pip, and their mole friend Sir Eddler plummeting down a cliffside waterfall on a crumbling rock! After a quick, humorous cutscene, I took control of Ruffy and was immediately introduced to the game’s highlight feature: the Swap ability. I spotted a patch of vines and, with the right shoulder button, scanned their texture. Aiming at the waterfall and using the right trigger made Ruffy fire the copied texture at it, changing its appearance from fast running water to thick green vines in a flash!

Our heroes were saved, and the demo smoothly transitioned into the game’s title screen to what is possibly the funkiest, grooviest jam I have ever heard in a video game! I’m not kidding, and I knew from the trailers that Ruffy and the Riverside had some bangers already.

After the title screen I was back controlling Ruffy and in the game’s hub. Being a demo, only certain parts of the hub were accessible, with translucent walls at the edge of the demo area. Meeting back up with Eddler, he explains that there are doors to other parts of Riverside, but they can only be unlocked once Ruffy has enough stars. Stars can be found throughout the hub, as well as rewards for completing objectives in each level. I had access to one door to start, with two more nearby that required a growing number of stars to enter. 3D platformer fans, especially from the N64/PS1 era, will be very familiar with this game structure, originally appearing in the iconic Super Mario 64.

Speaking of the 90’s, Ruffy and the Riverside‘s art style, a blend of 2D and 3D, reimagining the colourful and eccentric world design emblematic of that era. Every texture, from the rocks and grass, to the doors and windows are bold, with swappable ones blending in with regular textures, making you hunt out ones you may have missed. Every character, including Ruffy, is a hand-drawn 2D sprite, bringing a wacky charm to the world. Even while stationary, they bounce and jig with such an expressive nature that the whole game feels constantly in motion. Even just the choice to have Pip hover around Ruffy adds an energy to what’s on screen. I watched for a moment as Ruffy idled, snapping his fingers with the music, and admired how the pencil strokes of his fur moved with each frame. It’s this attention to detail, along with the game’s mix of a 3D environment and 2D characters, that distinguishes Ruffy and the Riverside from its inspirations and contemporaries.

Instead of going straight into the available level, I explored the hub area, getting used to the controls and feel of the game. Ruffy moves exactly how you’d want"”smooth and responsive. With a big jump that can change into a glide with Pip’s assistance, even just running and jumping about is fun. This is also due to the game’s excellent level design, creating environments that beg to be explored. It only took me a few seconds to find a way onto the rooves of the hub town’s buildings, and I was immediately rewarded with the discovery of a couple of stars.

There are several other collectables to find in the game, and they are tracked for you in the menu screens, alongside a beautiful and detailed map of Riverside. The only other collectable I came across were butterflies with different coloured wings. Checking them in the menu it suggested I find someone named Quintus, who turned out be a small fox with a penchant for butterflies. Collecting all 30 and bringing them to Quintus will earn you a reward, and is one of many side missions the game has, waiting to be discovered.

The Riverside is a bustling place, full of kooky characters rushing about and bringing the world to life. I could learn little details about the game and the cast, or maybe be introduced to a fun puzzle or challenge. I only met Sir Eddler and Quintus of the eclectic group shown on the inventory screen, and I can’t wait to meet them!

It may come as no surprise, but the most impressive and fun part of the demo was seeing the Swap ability in action. You can’t use Ruffy’s powers with every texture in the game, but what you can do with what’s available is literally game-changing. I’ll use a puzzle as an example. There are these 2D challenges you can find on flat surfaces that Ruffy can jump into, one of many things to find around Riverside. Talking to a nearby NPC gave me hints on how to get rid of a rather mean looking tree in the puzzle, but it required something hot and I didn’t have anything right now. While exploring the hub, I found a patch of lava and copied its texture using the Swap ability. Then I spotted a small river flowing near the puzzle. Swapping the water for lava turned the cool blue currents into a glowing red stream, which I traced back to my goal. Back at the puzzle, I swapped the tree's water for lava, watching as it melted away. I switched back the lava to water before teleporting inside the wall and collecting another star.

This is one of many examples of how I used the Swap ability, just in what I could do in the demo! I could change the colour of the buildings’ rooves, swap symbols as part of puzzles, and alter the world around me at will.

I experienced this even more once I started jumping into the different levels I unlocked. Another stand out moment was using chunks of ice to transform a pool of water so that I could reach another part of the level. I’ll stop there with the examples, but I can’t stress how impressed I am with the creativity and variety of how the Swap ability can be used.

With larger effects like changing all that water to ice, the Swap will only last for a limited time, providing enough challenge to not make the game a cakewalk. Ruffy only has three hit points before he’s knocked out and you return to the last point the game saved. There is no punishment for this, and it doesn’t feel that bad when there is so much out there to do and find. I mean, I haven’t even talked about the hay bale trick challenge level, but maybe you should discover that for yourselves!

After spending a good hour playing, I finally decided to see what was behind the last door in the demo, and I don’t think I could ask for a better finish! What waited behind the last door was a perfect sendoff"”unexpected, thrilling, and the kind of moment that left me grinning. I won't say more, but trust me, you'll want to see it for yourself. What the developers at Zockrates Labs have done with this demo is a loud reminder that a great demo is the best form of marketing for your game.

What stood out most to me from my time with the demo for Ruffy and the Riverside was its sheer confidence"”bold in both design and execution. Nowhere is this clearer than in the signature swap mechanic, a rare blend of familiarity and innovation"”so intuitive it feels like second nature, yet unlike anything I've seen in a game before. If the full game delivers on the promise of this demo, Ruffy and the Riverside could be something truly special"”a hidden gem that captures the magic of classic 3D platformers while pushing the genre in exciting new directions.