Finding Teddy 2: Definitive Edition Review – Teddy Be Good
I miss the innocence of being a child. No worries, no cares and the only responsibility being which one of your cuddly toys would be your favourite. Sadly, that can’t be the case forever and that’s why I like to play games like Finding Teddy 2; to remind myself of that innocence I once had.
A sequel to the original point & click adventure Finding Teddy, Finding Teddy 2: Definitive Edition takes a different approach in the form of a side-scrolling, platform adventure game. The story starts out with a young girl sitting down playing a video game. A great start. But within a few moments, there appears to be a power cut. The little girl goes down to the basement to find the source of the problem, only to be greeted with her favourite teddy being sucked into an unknown portal. Given the circumstances, there’s only one thing to do – go into the portal and get your furry friend back!
Thrown out into a World known as Exidus, a strange and mystical place where King Tarent rules all. Surprisingly, King Tarent is a good King – loving all his subjects equally. Unfortunately, this creates hatred and envy among other easily corrupted beings. Enter Anguis the Magician – a jealous soul who takes the throne by force. Aguis doesn’t want anybody leaving or entering Exidus and thus seals all the gates meaning the innocent little girl and her teddy friend are trapped.
Of course, there is a way in which the little girl and teddy can escape, but it’s not going to be easy. Aguis the Magician has hidden four crystal eggs randomly across the map, it’s finding these that is the key to escaping Exidus. That, and helping King Tarent escape his prison. It can’t be too hard, right?
Finding Teddy 2: Definitive Edition features a gameplay style that is reminiscent of games from my childhood – simple yet effective, side-scrolling, platformer heaven. Upon first starting your adventure in Exidus, you will soon realise that the game features some RPG aspects to it; brief exploration, solving puzzles and upgrading your characters abilities. This was a nice addition.
Combat in Finding Teddy 2 is simple yet fluid. It features basic mechanics with a retro feel – being unable to attack whilst moving was one of the first things I noticed and it took me back to the NES days which was both good and bad. Although your attacks don’t differ too much, certain enemies require a different approach to being defeated. Some may need to be attacked head-on, some may be from behind. Learning these attack patterns can be extremely helpful.
As you progress through the game you will quickly realise there are many areas that are either blocked or locked in some way. Finding artefacts and runes will allow you to pass through these areas so you will often have to remember areas which were locked to come back to at a later time. This adds another layer to an already 20-hour game.
Finding Teddy 2 looks and feel like an older generation game that has been greatly remastered. Despite its pixelated art style, it does look great. Nothing I’ve not seen on the Switch previously, but the majority of the areas you discover are packed full of detail and vibrant in colour. I was also happy to see there were no performance issues at all.
The game’s soundtrack has some pretty catchy numbers on it too, suited to the style of the level you’re currently in. Some are fast-paced and others are slow and spooky creating a more intense atmosphere.
Finding Teddy 2: Definitive Edition has a pretty good value for money with it being below £10. It offers a good 20 hours of engaging gameplay and story. There are plenty of other games like it on the Nintendo Switch but I’ve not seen many of them do it as well as this one. It’s an enjoyable game with a lot of things going for it; if you’re a fan of retro-inspired platformers, this will be your cup of tea.
Finding Teddy 2: Definitive Edition Review provided by NintendoLink
Review also available on OpenCritic
Publisher: Pixel Heart
Developer: Storybird
Release Date: April 16th, 2020
Price: £8.99
Game Size: 485MB
RPG elements
Nostalgic feel
Decent price point
Doesn't set itself apart from the pile of other platformers available
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A massive lover of all things nerdy, Chelly has been games writing for over 3 years now and hopes to gain more experience and knowledge doing so. Her favourite games are Monster Hunter, Borderlands and Pokemon.