Kudzu | Switch Review

You might not know it, but developers are still creating games for classic consoles. Pie For Breakfast Studios is one such developer. Their game, Kudzu, is the first title for the original Game Boy to be published by 8-Bit Legit. Although there are physical copies of the game, it might be a tall order to get your hands on one. But thankfully, a Switch port of the game releases on April 5th. If you’re a fan of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening from 1993, you’ll feel right at home with this title. It feels very inspired by that classic, yet stands on its own as an exceptional title that would have rubbed shoulders with many of the top-tier games from that platform.

How’s Your Green Thumb?

You play as Max, a gardener trained by a master gardener named Zoen. You start the game being tasked with delivering his tea, only to find his home empty. His room is littered with notes about an invasive plant species called Kudzu that is threatening their world. You set off on an adventure to secure the safety of your mentor and do your best to rid the world of the evil plants who want to destroy humanity.

The theme of gardening is a theme I never expected to enjoy as much as I do. All of your weapons and items have something to do with taking care of plant life. You start with a machete, which you use to fight off snails, spiders, and all sorts of zombified critters. You’ll eventually discover a hoe, a rake, and even special boots that allow you to traverse across sticky brambles. These tools allow you to access new areas and defeat bosses in creative ways. It’s super charming and brings a fresh take to a game that combines elements from gear-gated games and puzzle dungeons from other familiar franchises.

There are four main areas to explore, each with a very distinct feel. In only one instance are you actually going inside, however. The rest all take place outside, which is a fun twist. You’ll navigate from screen to screen looking for new tools to take out the roots of the plant “boss” of each area. You flip switches, hoe dirt piles to open new paths, and even use the Kudzu plants themselves to open passageways. It’s never aggressively difficult and my 6-7 hour play time flew by.

Gardener’s Delight

Kudzu is obviously a Game Boy title, but I’m quite impressed with the level of detail present. Sure, some of the characters have a hint of familiarity, but most of them have unique personalities. That’s no easy task considering the limited pixel-size on the original platform. But what really seals the deal is the super catchy chip tunes that set the tone of each zone in ways I never thought possible on a Game Boy game without the Nintendo logo on it. I caught myself humming along on more than one occasion.

One nice touch genuinely made me smile while playing. The developers included themselves as character in the game, which is a fun secret to discover. You find out in the closing credits that a lot of the characters (and even pets) were named after their own family members. It’s proof that this was a grass-roots (see what I did there?) work of art with a ton of love poured into it. It added a ton of charm to an already incredibly charming game.

My only issue with the game probably isn’t even fair to bring up, since it feels more like a fault of the hardware than design. Some of the hit box detection with enemies feels a little difficult to discern. Often times I was hit by an enemy when I didn’t feel I was within range. Thankfully, the game isn’t overly difficult, so it wasn’t much of an issue. And if you ever played on the Game Boy in the past, you’re probably very familiar. The cursor on the equipment screen also felt a bit sticky, but it didn’t impede my gameplay at all.

Kudzu Final Verdict

I was more than pleasantly surprised with Kudzu. It’s a great little title with an even better price tag that fans of classic games should not let fall under their radar. Everything from the story, the environments, and the characters ooze with whimsy in a way that never overstays its welcome. I absolutely love that new games exist on classic hardware, and it’s fantastic that we can play them on a modern console.

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out my reviews of other modern games designed for classic consoles: NEScape!, Project Blue, Dead Tomb, Battle Kid and the Fortress of Peril, and Trophy.

To hear me talk more about Kudzu, be sure to listen to our April 3rd podcast episode. You can hear that discussion begin around the 1:03:14 time stamp.

This review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy of Kudzu provided by 8-Bit Legit for coverage purposes. It is also available on Game Boy and PC via itch.io.