Slime-San is a quick thinking platformer that has been available on Steam since April 2017. Now, the New York based gaming studio Fabraz has brought the retro-looking game to the Nintendo Switch. A fun, fast-paced platformer is just what the Switch needed.
Slime-San’s story puts in you in control of a green slime that has ended up in a worm’s stomach. Each level you complete is another step closer to your freedom. Sounds simple, but it gets more difficult as each level is a mix of well-timed jumps, strategic actions, and racing against the stomach acid, which acts as the timer.
The tutorial for Slime-San is cleverly integrated into the first few levels. It’s still hectic from the start, but it shows you how to do the basic moves, one by one. After that, it merges them together into one, and you’re ready to escape. As noted previously, it’s a fast-paced platformer, but the simple color scheme makes it really clear on navigating the levels. There’s green, which is the player’s color and anything friendly. There’s also red, which is the worm’s stomach acid, so touch it and you’re restarting the level. The background is a mix of dark grey and white.
Although Slime-San appears to be your run-of-the-mill platform game, it has a few tricks up its slimy sleeve. You can slow down time when you’re jumping around, which helps to dodge the red goo. The slow down also doubles, allowing you to pass through certain green blocks. You will have to learn how to slow down time, but then return to normal speed at the just the right moment. If you don’t, you’ll be dying…a lot.
Thankfully, death isn’t too much of a bad thing here. which sounds strange. Death in Slime-San is really a fun game of trial and error. There is zero leg between the deaths, so it doesn’t slow your gameplay down, and you learn a bit more every time. Similar to the infamous Hotline Miami, when you inevitably die, you’ll restart the level instantly. This means less downtime, and more action. Throughout the game, you’ll have 100 levels, which are made up from 400 rooms. When you add this to the 100 levels from the new game+ mode, you’ll have a massive 800 rooms to get through.
After completing a dozen or so levels, you’ll come across the bosses. The aforementioned deaths are extremely helpful. For me, it wasn’t abundantly clear what needed to be done. After many deaths later, and I had this boss done. The combination of testing your reactions, as well as getting your timing just right, will get you through the toughest of slime battles.
The other part of Slime-San is that you can collect half-eaten apples on your travel through the stomach. These can then be used to buy different skills and outfits. Believe me when I say this, this game is more than just a platformer, it’s a skill.
Fabraz confirmed on Twitter recently that the anticipated DLC, “Blackbird’s Kraken,” will be free to Nintendo Switch owners. This means even more levels and even more skills to learn. Additionally, there will also be a retro Doom-esque shooter game set in the same style as the rest of the game.
Currently, Slime-San is available to buy for £10.00 in the UK and $14.99 in the US. Given that most games for the Switch are currently triple that price, it’s a great bargain.
