Gabriel Stanford-ReisingerNot gonna lie, it’s surprising that it took Mob Entertainment this long to introduce the Xbox audience to their colorful cast of marketable monstrosities. Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1 is — as its name suggests — the first entry in the ongoing indie horror series.
I’ve always been interested in the game itself, but always found other games more appealing, but with it heading to consoles, I saw no reason to stave off the experience any longer.
Just Wants A Hug
Dubbed “A Tight Squeeze,” Chapter 1 sees the player in the role of a nameless Playtime Co. toy factory worker who has returned to their former employer to investigate the disappearance of their co-workers. The game itself sets up a compelling enough plot that, while run-of-the-mill, does get your attention.
As you venture deeper, though, you’ll soon realize you are far from alone. Keeping a close eye on you, this chapter’s main antagonist, Huggy Wuggy, has never lost sight of you. There are even instances where you can spot parts of the marketable monster, only for it to slither away when you get too close.
I think one of the greatest parts of the game is its simplicity. You will know where to go and with a little trial and error, you’ll solve the puzzles scattered throughout the game. That’s right, it’s a puzzle game that ends in a big chase against the big blue monster.
Sunshine And Rainbows
While simplicity is a net positive for Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1, it also goes as a determinant, considering its Steam version remains free-to-play while you have to fork over $5 for what is very obviously a tech demo or a means for Mob to see how much of an audience there is in its wacky mascot horror.
Obviously, there’s an audience, enough of one that two chapters have released both significantly more feature-rich and worth being on Xbox more than its debut chapter.
The controls are clunky with a controller, it feels like the default controls weren’t fully tested, a simple tap to the right causes the GrabPack to either jerk way too far from your target or inch its way to the target until you finally end up jerking past it.
You Opened My Cage
Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1 is a fine experience if you can’t get your PC to run the game kinda smoothly, the jump from being a free download on Steam to a $5 expense makes the whole cost vs. length debate seem kind of valid.
While I see a lot of value in the game itself, there isn’t a reason to fork over the dough for a game that you could finish in less than an hour, much less one that isn’t even complete. As previously said, Chapter 2 and 3, both of which blow this entry out of the water in most every meaningful way, aren’t available on Xbox, I think it would’ve made more sense to hold off of releasing the first chapter to the platform until all three entries could be bundled into one single purchase.