The Plucky Squire is the debut title from developer All Possible Futures. Featuring an eye-catching mix of 2D and 3D visuals and classic platformer gameplay, it’s easy to see the game’s appeal at a glance. However, is there any substance beyond the admittedly charming style?
The Plucky Squire is structured as a playable picture book, complete with a British chap narrating. You move Jot, the titular squire, along the pages, and moving from one screen to the next actually flips the page. The fourth wall is broken fairly quickly, as Jot gains the power to leap from the book and into the third dimension. Certain sections play out on the desk surrounding the book, turning the game from A Link to the Past to Banjo-Kazooie with the press of a button.
In line with it being set inside a children’s storybook, the plot is fairly straightforward. Jot and his friends Violet and Thrash must team up to defeat the evil wizard Humgrump, who is using weird magic to change the narrative of the book. That said, The Plucky Squire does manage to stand out with its great sense of humour. The dialogue is cute, charming and funny, which more than makes up for it telling a rather conventional tale overall.
In both the 2D and 3D realms, The Plucky Squire plays as a hack ‘n slash. Jot swings his sword, can roll around and eventually gains certain special attacks like being able to throw his sword or do a spin attack. Every so often you’ll encounter a puzzle, some of which are familiar: moving a block onto a switch, killing all the enemies, etc. While others involve altering the words of the book so that a broken bridge becomes whole, or a metal box turns into cheese, to name but a few.
As the game goes on, Jot gains abilities allowing him to flip back and forth to different pages, and even tilt the book itself. Adding to the fun are a surprising amount of minigames spread throughout that borrow from a number of genres. Boss fight mechanics incorporate elements of Punch Out, Guitar Hero and Bejewelled, but there are fun diversions right in the middle of chapters too. It’s a great way to break up the relatively simple gameplay, as you never quite know what to expect.
A rather significant downside to the storybook structure is that the game never really lets you off the rails. I don’t think more than two pages ever went by without an animated cutscene or some dialogue explaining the puzzle you’re about to solve, bringing everything to a crawl. Do not go in expecting something like a 2D Zelda, where you have long stretches of free exploration between story beats. Outside the more cohesive 3D sections, The Plucky Squire at times feels held back by the storybook conceit.
Regardless, The Plucky Squire is a solid 2D and 3D adventure game with stunning art, charming writing and just enough left turns to keep you on your toes. Coming in at around 7–8 hours to hit the credits, it doesn’t overstay its welcome, either. Whether you have a hankering for a classic hack ‘n slash and clever puzzles, or the vibes and aesthetic of a Saturday morning cartoon, The Plucky Squire has you covered.
Rating: 8/10
The Plucky Squire was reviewed on PC using a code provided by the publisher.
