OlliOlli: Switch Stance offers the original OlliOlli experience as well as the sequel OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood. They look visually different but the gameplay is very similar. OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood is, however, a very welcome addition that improves upon its predcessor in a multitude of ways that I’ll highlight throughout my review.

Before I continue, you should know that I love performing insane tricks while soaring through the skies at ludicrous speeds in a game such as Tony Hawk’s Underground 2. And you can’t stop me from trying just one. . . more. . . time. . . to perform an even harder trick combination. Question is, will I ollie from joy or kickflip into a disaster playing OlliOlli: Switch Stance?

Developer: Roll7

Publisher: Gambitious

10 Hours Played // Review Copy Provided // $14.99

Tight Gameplay

OlliOlli: Switch Stance requires more precise inputs than a Tony Hawk game. I’d compare it to Celeste, as it similarly requires perseverance to complete. You could say, instead of climbing a mountain, you’re conquering a world turned into a skatepark. There is no story here though. Both OlliOlli’s start off with a relatively simple to grasp tutorial and eases you into the game by slowly introducing more and more tricks and mechanics as you progress through the levels. You’ll need to master these mechanics in order to beat later levels and challenges. And no need to worry about unlocking or forgetting tricks. Everything is accessible from the start in the “tricktionary”. Self-improvement is for me where the fun lies, including the grind to try and set a new high score. The ability to instantly restart a level when you mess up is a huge help with this.

A Lot Of Content

In career mode, you can unlock pro levels by completing all the optional challenges in an amateur level. Additionally, each level you beat unlocks a different kind of level, called a Spot, where you need to perform one long combo. You can set a high score for each Level and Spot, which will be shared on the global leaderboards. You can also participate in the Daily Grind, which is essentially a rotating Spot where you get only one chance to prove your worth. And as if that wasn’t enough, real die-hards can unlock RAD Mode by finishing all the pro levels. Completing RAD mode means to finish all levels with only perfectly landed tricks. Good luck.

Doing a perfectly grinded boardslide in the original OlliOlli.

Multiplayer

Combo Rush is the multiplayer mode unique to OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood. You can compete with your friends locally in any of the levels in four game modes: Timed, highest score wins; Race, first to the finish line; OneShot, perform one combo and get the highest score; and Score, first to reach a set amount of points.

It’s fun to compete against friends and see who performs best under pressure. Granted, because OlliOlli: Switch Stance is a technical game you’ll need friends that own the game or have friends that don’t mind losing. Time spent practicing will heavily influence the outcome of multiplayer battles. If you do have such friends, you’ll be able to get even more mileage out of an already content-rich game.

I do have some small critique here though: only player 1 can select the game type and level. A loser-picks feature would be nice. I’d be also interested in seeing an online multiplayer, but it’s far from a must.

Combo Rush multiplayer mode in OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood.

Intuitive And Snappy Controls

The tricks you perform feel instant and snappy. This is a necessity when you’re literally flying from ramp to ramp until you inevitably hit what feels like a strategically placed traffic cone with a personal vendetta against the combo you’re trying to pull. Simply press X to quickly restart the level and try again, or, you know, watch yourself tumble down a staircase before violently turning into a pile of limbs.

High Variety Of Tricks

Press down and release to ollie, then press B right before you hit the ground to perform a Perfect landing. Too early? You’ll score an OK. Too late? You’ll suffer a sloppy landing. Now press right and release to do a kickflip, then hold down to start grinding that railing. These are just some of the basics. Advanced techniques will have you rotate the control stick before releasing upon which you’ll start spinning through the air in various ways depending on the rotation. You can also perform additional spins to follow up on tricks by holding one of the shoulder buttons. Be careful to not perform a trick with too long of an animation, otherwise you might miss that next grind or mess up your landing!

In addition to the above, OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood expanded the tricktionary with a quintessential trick: manuals. This allows you to string grinds and manuals throughout the whole level to create one monster combo. This is harder than it may initially appear, as perfect landings are required to keep momentum. You can normally Push with B for more speed while riding, but not during manuals. And you’ll have to rely on perfect grinds to get a speed boost. Some additional advanced techniques were added as well, which increases the skill ceiling even further when competing on the global leaderboard.

Doing an Impossible Nollie in the original OlliOlli.

Audio

The soundtrack of OlliOlli: Switch Stance is phenomenal. It’s around an hour of highly varied indie music per game that plays on repeat. There are eleven unique tracks on the original OlliOlli, another eighteen in the sequel. Whether you’re grinding down an escalator to some jazz hop, doing an inward heel late FS shove-it to the beat of some EDM, or simply checking out your achievements in the menu while listening to some Chillstep, you’re going to have a good time.

And in case you’re not in the mood for a particular song, simply flick the right stick to the right and it’ll skip to the next song. This for some reason doesn’t work in Combo Rush though. Check out the soundtrack of OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood on youtube if you’re unsure if this is your jam.

Nose Manual in OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood.

Visuals

Even if you manage to keep from falling, OlliOlli: Switch Stance sports a disjointed look, but in a good way. The original OlliOlli rocks classic pixel art visuals whereas OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood offers a smoother somewhat flashy cartoonish look. I personally really like OlliOlli’s pixel-art, but the more vibrant visuals in the sequel have grown on me in the past few days. Regardless, the most important quality is that everything moves so silky smooth, which is true for both games.

Game selection screen when starting up OlliOlli: Switch Stance.

Conclusion

OlliOlli: Switch Stance is definitely not for everyone. There is no story. Mastering tricks and completing challenges will take time and patience. But if that’s the kind of thing you like to do while listening to an awesome selection of indie music, then OlliOlli: Switch Stance is a must-have. Every level is a high score waiting to be set. Every challenge is waiting to be beaten. Excuse me while I go try and set some more world records before everyone else joins in on the fun.

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