Sometimes the simplest ideas can work out great.  That’s the case with Tilt Pack, a couch multiplayer game for up to four players for Switch.  All you do is move rectangle boxes with faces on them and they’ll flip and rotate as you try and knock the other boxes off the playfield.  And that’s it, really, but it’s surprisingly fun.  It’s like a sumo match with personified Pong paddles!

Controls couldn’t be simpler, as all you do is move left and right.  There are several characters you can pick from, and each one is a different size and length.  Larger characters can push others easier, but are bigger targets for hazards.  My favorite is Smirk, a goofy long green rectangle with a silly face and says “Smiiiirrrk!” in a dorky annoying voice every time he wins or loses.  As you move, you’ll flip and flop around so you have to be mindful of how you interact with the other players and stages.  Whoever is left on the stage last, wins.  You can lose by falling off the level or getting hit by things like spikes or lava bubbles.  Sometimes power-ups appear that can make your paddle bigger for a short while, or bombs that can blow everyone around.

There are two ways to play.  One to four players can compete in four round matches with three other players or CPU opponents.  In the Single Player mode, you’ll choose a character and stage theme and defeat each character one by one, like a fighting game.  You can unlock a couple of extra stage options by beating this mode.  Even though there are only four stage themes (stadium, temple, volcano, and game show), there are a wide variety of kinds of stages in each setting.

I guess the only problems I have with this game is that I wish there were more controller options.  Even in full screen mode, you can only play the game with one JoyCon.  Not that you need any more than that, but it would be nice to play the game docked in the controller holder in TV mode.  And it would’ve been better if the game had more content.  There are plenty of stages, but it would’ve been nice to have more, or different characters or power-ups.  But as it stands it’s still a fun simple game that anyone can pick up and play.

Kid Factor:

Tilt Pack is rated E for Everyone with an ESRB descriptor of Mild Fantasy Violence.  You can push or get pushed off a stage, and if you hit a hazard, you’ll fly toward the TV and hit the screen.  But that’s about as violent as it gets.  No reading is needed and anyone can pick up and understand this one.  Good family fun.

Tags: Game Reviews