Gather nuts and defend them from other backyard urban animals in this pick up and play multiplayer game.  It mixes elements of soccer and simple battle games for some deceptively fun matches that anyone can get into.  It’s available to play on Switch, Xbox One, and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.

The first thing you’ll do is select your character and which team you’ll be on.  You can be backyard animals like squirrels, dogs, armadillos, raccoons, etc.  Each has different stats like speed or strength.  You can also choose their color and outfit them with hats and other costumes you’ve unlocked.  You can also choose to have computer controlled characters as well.  Up to 8 players can go at it on one system!

You’ll then choose one of three game modes and fight it out in settings like a backyard or street (more stages are unlockable).  In the first game mode, you’ll have to grab a nut and bring it back to your hideout (a colored doghouse).  Press certain buttons to throw the nut away, jump, attack other players, or dig repeatedly in the ground for power-ups where X marks the spot.  You can pick up boosts in the from of food.  Coffee will give you a speed boost, hot dogs give you a shield, and donuts increase your strength for a limited time.  The team that gets five nuts into their house first, wins.

The second game mode is more of a battle where you use attacks to knock nuts from your opponents and whoever can knock five out first, wins.  The third game mode is similar to the first, except you can steal nuts from your opponent’s house and dig them up to bring back to yours.  And that’s pretty much it.  You can play with others nearby in couch multiplayer or go online.

Only problems I had with the game is that there’s no single player mode, which could’ve been easily implemented, I think.  Also the game seems awfully basic and amateurish.  But otherwise I still had some fun with this one and members of my family who don’t normally play games were able to pick this one up pretty easily and understand it, so that’s always a plus.

Kid Factor:

Other than the slightly off-color title and other nut jokes in the game’s text, there’s not really much objectionable stuff here.  You can swat other animals with your tail, and get knocked about by cars and such, but that’s about as violent as it gets.  No worse than a Tom and Jerry cartoon.  Reading skill is helpful for some of the text and menus, but not necessary just to play.  Save Your Nuts is rated E for Everyone.

Tags: Game Reviews