Swapping Words: Forest and Ruin

Learn how to swap words and manipulate pages in The Plucky Squire to solve puzzles and progress through the game. Our guide covers the core mechanics and challenges.

The Plucky Squire is a debut video game from an indie studio that centers on the concept of a children's picture book coming to life. The game features Jot, a squire in a generic children's fantasy world, whose story is told through a series of books. Initially, players explore Jot's life in a top-down, Zelda 1-esque gameplay arrangement with a ligne claire art style. However, the narrative takes a turn when the evil wizard casts Jot out of the book into the owner's bedroom, transforming him into a 3D render. Players can then manipulate the book's pages and words to solve puzzles. For example, changing text like "A massive guard was blocking the way" to "A tiny ant was pushing a crumb" can alter the game's reality. The game also features impressive visuals, with a nigh-photorealistic world outside the book and a simplistic, authentic art style within the book sections. The transition between 2D and 3D gameplay is seamless, and the writing includes good gags, enhanced by a narrator voice. While the core mechanic of manipulating words and pages is praised, the game is criticized for introducing too many unrelated minigames, such as shooting, boss fights resembling other games like Super Punch-Out!! and Dr. Mario, and lengthy stealth sections. These diversions detract from the game's unique premise and mechanics. The game culminates in a final boss fight that resembles Space Harrier, which is also seen as disconnected from the established narrative and gameplay. The reviewer suggests that the game suffers from "first game syndrome," being overly eager to showcase ideas and references, which spreads its potential too thin.