12/31/2023 0 Comments Captain toad treasure tracker endingWhile the main story is fairly easy, the optional challenges and time trials can provide real difficulty, which engage a player’s motor skills as well as their mind. That is not to say the game is devoid of the same reflex-based challenge. Players slowly untie the knot of the level until the last breakthrough where the stage unfolds before them - it’s the same rush and feeling of mastery achieved when clearing a section of “Dark Souls,” minus the demonic tone and controller-throwing rage. But rather than forcing them to do so through a constant cycle of death and backtracking, the leisurely pace and cerebral gameplay of “Treasure Tracker” encourages players to attack the level at their own pace. The concept of “learning the level” is, in essence, the same thing that is asked of “Dark Souls” players. The game is played by rotating the camera around the level to glean new information and to allow Toad to access further areas, similar to 2007’s “Super Mario Galaxy.” The way the levels’ moving pieces fit together is nothing short of masterful like the best dungeons from 3D Zelda games, they reward a firm spatial awareness and provide puzzles that urge the player to take a step back and consider the level as a whole interconnected unit. The small, cube-shaped levels look like tiny models or shadow boxes, with tightly interlocking corridors and mechanisms. While “puzzle boxes” might sound like a weird, advertising-buzzword-type way to describe them, there’s no better way to do so. Weighed down by his treasure-filled bag, Toad can’t jump, moves slowly and falls like a brick as he works his way through self-contained puzzle boxes. The game consists of a severely restricted Toad. What emerged, however, was a charming and surprisingly rich little game. Released initially for the Wii U in 2014 - though I’ll be discussing the 2018 Switch port - “Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker” is a stand-alone puzzle game based on the weird, genre-shifting “Toad” levels from 2013’s “Super Mario 3D World.” Since these features in “Super Mario 3D World” were underwhelming levels in an underwhelming game, “Treasure Tracker” seemed destined to fail. Nevertheless, I couldn’t help but feel there was a “Souls-”shaped hole in my heart. Whatever the case may be, every attempt I’ve made to sink my teeth into the series has been short-lived. I find the loop structure to be frustrating and kind of boring, though others would argue I lack patience or just need to “ Git Gud”. No matter where the player is dropped, the core skill tested remains the same: the player’s ability to remember and learn the level through a trial and error loop. Players struggle their way through a quick opening area, face down a terrifying boss and begin working their way through the labyrinthine environments of the fictional Lordran, Yharnam or, uh, Japan. This last piece is the most interesting to me: people delight in the masochistically challenging gameplay of “Dark Souls.” The player is thrust into an unknown and hostile environment, teeming with traps and deadly monsters, with little more than a few short text boxes to serve as guides. Gamers are drawn to its grimly beautiful aesthetics, complex lore told through item descriptions and scenery, and hard-as-nails gameplay. Since “Demon’s Souls,” developer FromSoftware’s punishingly difficult, gothic dark-fantasy, role-playing games, the “Dark Souls” series, have created a whole new genre of games and single-handedly defined the past decade of gaming. 2014’s “Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker” is 2011’s “Dark Souls,” but better.īefore you storm off, let me explain.
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