The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets from Fast Travel Games is a game that reminds me of a good Pixar movie. Kids will love it simply because of the adorably charming characters, while the grownups will dig it because it delivers a heartwarming story in a cute and polished little package.

At first glance, The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets is an interesting choice as the next game from the developers of sci-fi shooter Apex Construct. The two games may be polar opposites as far as style and scope are concerned, but they both share the quality and polish we’ve come to expect from the veteran developers.

I don’t want to share too much of the story behind this curious tale, but you’ll be helping your grandpa search these beautifully crafted tiny worlds to search for the stolen pets. With a pair of Move controllers, you can manipulate these dioramas in your search. Spin them around, raise and lower them, literally rattle the trees to see what shakes out. Initially, these floating worlds seem small, but they are packed with detail you can interact with. And almost everything you see has a secret or is a vital piece of the puzzle.

As a puzzle game, it’s not a mind-bender. You won’t need to search YouTube to find clues, but they aren’t so easy that it wasn’t fun. For me, the fun wasn’t in solving a tough puzzle, but more unravelling a sweet story, that I imagine is a very personal one for at least someone on the team at Fast Travel Games. It’s not my story, obviously, but one I couldn’t help get invested in. I didn’t always get along with my siblings, so while it wasn’t my story as I said, it resonated with me, nonetheless.

The five levels are all unique and actually represent a memory from the character’s childhood. Your childhood bedroom acts as the game’s hub and as you unlock the next level, it is represented by a photograph on the wall. Once you select your photo, grampa will narrate as you search a snowcapped wonderland, an underwater world, a prehistoric world with volcanos, an enchanted kingdom and more. The God-like view of each of these dioramas provides a fun opportunity to search for pirate treasure under the sea, plug up a volcano, manipulate a waterfall, and much more.

The game is very short, but it’s a value-priced title that doesn’t seem out of line when you consider the polish. Besides finding each of the missing pets in the five different worlds, there are also some collectibles in the form of coins. I’d like to say these additional collectibles add some replayability, but in truth, even the most casual playthrough could see a player finish the game to 100% completion in 2 hours or less. Obviously, that’s not a strong point, but if you were expecting to get a dozen hours of intense gaming action from this charming puzzle game, then that’s on you.

The curious tale of the stolen pets is a game that I enjoyed playing, and one I enjoy sharing with others. Especially the kids in my life. It’s not the most value you’ll ever get from a game, but I think it would be hard to play this game and not enjoy it.

The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets PSVR Review Overall - Very Good - 7/10 7/10 7/10 Summary The follow up to Apex Construct from Fast Travel Games is a sharp left turn into a charming puzzle game with a somewhat serious story to tell. It’s quite short without much replayability, but what is here is a joy to experience and one you’ll probably want to share with others. Pros The intricately detailed worlds are fun to interact with

The story is well told and should resonate with anyone with siblings

It’s pretty damn cute Cons It’s very short

Not much in the way of replayability without some DLC

Review Disclaimer: This review was carried out using a copy of the game provided by the publisher. For more information, please read our Review Policy.

Reviewed using PSVR.

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Also available on:

Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift, Windows Mixed Reality, HTC Vive, Vive Index

Release date:

November 14th, 2019 (PCVR, Oculus Quest)

November 20th, 2019 (PSVR)