Imagine how amazing it would be to soar through space with your best friend! All the sights to see and places to explore . . . What an adventure! Now imagine that same scenario, but with an evil, floating alien head deciding it wants to blow you up. What do you do? This is the intro to Crashlands, and that was a trick question.

Developer: Butterscotch Shenanigans

Publisher: Butterscotch Shenanigans

Hours Played: 10 hours // Review Copy Provided // Price: $14.99 USD

It was a trick question because when an evil, floating alien head wants something, it gets it! The maniacal creature, named “Hewgodooko”, needs a piece from your ship that would destroy said vessel. No sooner had it shown up, than you’re on fire, hurtling down through the atmosphere of a strange planet. After an astonishingly gentle crash landing, you are left unharmed, and slightly upset. Not solely because of what just transpired, but because you were on your way to deliver some very important packages. And you happen to take your galactic delivery service position very seriously.

Getting the Job Done

You assume the role of Flux Dabes, a futuristic, galactic, female “truck driver” of sorts. Both you and your associate/ best friend “Juicebox”, a mechanical, robotic being, were on a mission. Your shipment of packages will be delivered, and nothing will stop you! Being stranded on an unknown planet among its hostile inhabitants is just a minor hiccup; a ‘hazard of the job’, if you will.

Luckily for you, JuiceBox is equipped to deal with a diverse array of emergency scenarios. Of course that includes this one, as JuiceBox is able to store, categorize, and craft items very effectively. They are also able to store information, provide objectives, and generally lead the way to success as you try to figure out how you will get your shipment to its rightful owner. It almost makes you wonder what you are good for . . . oh yeah, the opposable thumbs. Those pollical digits will get plenty of use in Crashlands!

Crashlands is a role-playing, action/ adventure game with a heavy focus on crafting and combat. This indie title, which originated on mobile platforms, does not take itself too seriously, as seen by its humor. During your play through you will meet friendly local inhabitants of the planet Woanope (yes, that’s the name of the planet). These locals move the story along by providing you with quests, conundrums, and concoctions. It won’t take the player long to realize the game is both simple and surprisingly complex at the same time. The potential for many hours of play is apparent – that is if you can stand the grind.

Home is Where the Heart is

I will say the freedom in Crashlands is liberating. Your first set of quests is to help get you acquainted with the mechanics of the game. This is done by crafting items to form a makeshift bungalow of sorts. This is where you will initially set up camp and call “home”. After that it is a free-for-all!

You can literally walk anywhere on the map. Don’t want to quest? Go explore. Later on in my experience I decided to test out just how large the area of play is. Let’s just say I walked north for AN HOUR (in real time), and still did not hit any boundaries. After reaching out to the developers on Twitter they informed me it would take approximately three hours before I would hit any boundary. This is incredibly large and much more than expected.

On a lesser positive note, despite the massive real estate of the playable environment, it lacks diversity. This is specifically in the random environment and enemy encounters, and is disappointing. There are probably 6 or 7 different enemies, with 3-4 forms each, and that’s it. And when I say forms, I mean some are slightly larger, have a swapped color palette, and larger AOE attacks. The scant variety of enemies reminds me a bit of the complaints that Breath of the Wild received. Imagine that – just on a much simpler scale.

The same goes for the friendlies you will come across in your travels. There seems to be only one amicable race you come into contact with. Fortunately, their problems – er, quests are unique. You will be so busy trying to fulfill their ridiculous requests that it is relatively easy to overlook the recycled sprites used in the game.

Craft Your Own Adventure

Humoring them in their demands will open up new side quest lines. It will behoove you to keep an eye out for the three green dialogue dots. That trio of periods signifies a potential adventure! Plus, both the main quest line and side quests will grant access to modified areas of the map that would otherwise be undiscovered. This, in turn, will also unlock new recipes for crafting, and assist in advancing the storyline.

Speaking of recipes, as I mentioned earlier, crafting plays a significant role in Crashlands! I hope you enjoy deconstructing the elements you discover and gathering items . . . because you will be doing a lot of that. I actually somewhat enjoy the mindless tasks of chopping down wooden growths and harvesting foreign substances. It’s relaxing, requires little attention, but actually contributes to the game. Gathering items according to a recipe is equivalent to grinding for experience in any traditional RPG; its’s just part of the experience. I feel like it gives off vibes of another popular craft-heavy indie title, Stardew Valley.

Gear Up to Take Down

It helps that there is a fairly abundant amount of items you can create. Not to mention that there is a downplayed rarity scale for items. Multiple crafts of the same items can potentially yield different stats, qualities, and rarities. Trial and error, or repetition, is effective for staying equipped with the optimal gear throughout your journey. Are you keen to wielding a blade, swinging a hammer, or cutting foes down to size with a scythe? Because you have the options! I suggest trying all to establish your favored combat style.

On the topic of combat, I also suggest keeping all three weapon class options on hand at any given time. Different enemies may be handled easier with a specific class of weapon, or by utilizing different perks. As combat is a key element in Crashlands, you’ll always want to be ready to throw down! You’ll have a few quick slots mapped to specific buttons that will allow a seamless combat experience through strategically utilizing your weapon, multiple sub-weapons, and multiple special/ miscellaneous items as well. My favorite combination so far has been a poison and berserk perk with a stun weapon, complemented by a healing item and a special item that grants temporary invincibility. There are many more options to try though!

Sun’s Out, Puns Out

Lastly, I did want to touch on the overall style of Crashlands – the humor and the art specifically. The dialogue is written in a way that makes for cheesy smiles through silly jokes and exaggerated situations. I did get a few good laughs from some of the puns, but I wouldn’t say they win any awards in the comedy department. If you can suspend the disbelief, roll with the punch-lines, and gloss over some of the cringier stuff, it is enjoyable.

The hyperbolic and zany nature of the game is right in line with its bright, cartoony graphics. Crashlands’ menus are easy to navigate and look great. Its environments are lush and lively, and serve specific purposes (in terms of material gathering). Pair all that with the bobbing, bouncy, movements of Flux, and it all comes together fairly well. The character models are crisp, distinguishable, and unique. The dynamic between Flux and JuiceBox is that of siblings or best friends, and makes for a duo that you enjoy playing as – think Ratchet and Clank, just slightly less badass.

Honorable Mentions

Before my closing thoughts, I also wanted to quickly throw out a few honorable mention mechanics that make this game worth playing:

Co-op capabilities in playing the game (one as Flux, and the other as JuiceBox), which opens up combat options significantly!

Pets! You can gather eggs from their adult monster counterparts and hatch your own baby abominations – super cute!

House-building! You are able to craft unique furniture, items, walls, flooring, statues, etc. anywhere you decide to call home!

Boss Battles! Certain quests and side quests will allow you to battle in unique boss fights that can yield specific items or physical trophies you can place in your home!

Power-ups! Throughout the world map you will come across glowing stones that will grant you special, temporary abilities from one-hit crafting to wings that will allow you to fly/ float!

Cooking! Weapons, armor, and items aren’t the only thing you can get recipes for. You can also cook up different food dishes, potions, and other things you’ll just have to see for yourself!

Day and night cycle! There is always a time stamp in the bottom right-hand corner that will let you know how close you are to sunrise and sunset. This makes for a nice change-up, and let’s things that glow stand out! (Don’t worry, you never have to sleep!)

Bscotch ID! Creating an account with Butterscotch Shenanigans will give the player access to different perks, achievements, and rewards. Plus they’ll send over emails that give tips, information, and access to the Crashlands Discord server.

Conclusion

All in all, Crashlands exceeded my expectations. It wasn’t amazing, but it did prove serviceable. This title’s crafting elements are much more in depth than I expected, and satisfy the urge to create! The sheer size of the game map is incredible, and will keep the player busy for many hours. Crashlands’ cast of characters are likeable, and its dialogue keeps the mood light and fun. I will note that if you don’t enjoy craft-heavy elements, or “the grind”, then you most likely will not enjoy this game. Other than that, if you need something to keep you busy in between the heavy-hitting titles, this may be a good option for you. I recommend it solely because it was more addictive than expected – holding my attention for longer than many games can!

Thanks for reading! I appreciate you taking the time to look over my thoughts and opinions on Crashlands for Nintendo Switch. If you enjoy discussing games, feel free to head on over to our community Discord! We’re always talking about something gaming related! We also have an increasingly active YouTube channel and subreddit; take a look! Last but not least, if you are a Nindie fanatic, you can join the others in our Patreon. Thank you for the support!