The Plucky Squire review: An intra-dimensional romp of whimsy and fun

The Plucky Squire is one of those games that leave a strong first impression. Fans have been eagerly anticipating the launch of Devolver Digital's latest platformer escapade, which wowed players with its seamless switch between 2D and 3D gameplay. The vibrant color palette, lighthearted tone revolving around a magical children's book, and laid-back gameplay certainly attracted a fair share of players.

Now that it's finally out, let's see if it's magic lands or if this book is best left stowed away on the dusty bookshelf. Read on to know our full thoughts on The Plucky Squire.

The Plucky Squire welcomes you to the Land of Mojo

And thus, this adventure begins (Image via Devolver Digital)

Looking for Crossword hints & solutions? Check out latest NYT Mini Crossword Answers, LA Times Crossword Answers, and USA Today Crossword Answers

The story takes place within a children's storybook known as "The Plucky Squire". If it wasn't obvious already, yes, it is about the titular hero Jot. As the main hero of the book, he is destined to go on an adventure with his friends Violet and Thrash and defeat the evil sorcerer Humgrump. But when Humgrump realizes that he is doomed to be the antagonist who will continue to face defeat time and time again, he decides to take matters into his own hands.

Humgrump twists the fate of the realm and rewrites the story by kicking Jot out of the book using powerful magic no one had seen before. This tear in reality chucks the hero into the "real world" — the bedroom of a human kid known as Sam. Aiming to make the most of this bizarre situation, Jot must weave through the 2D world of the book and the 3D realm of the room to put a stop to Humgrump's antics.

The adventure takes place over several chapters and will take Jot and friends across various biomes in the land of Mojo. Throughout the eight to 10 hour story, players will encounter various NPCs, both friendly and hostile—and some of them can get a bit wordy. All in all, it is a neat tale of friendship and unity that, while nothing exceptional or mind-blowing, is perfectly well-suited to the game's whimsical theme and charming plot.

An adventure to remember

With Humgrump leaving chaos behind in his wake, the gang must follow his trail and undo the damage he has done. To accomplish this, players must hop between the 2D and 3D worlds via green portals to retrieve items or key tools to progress in the book's story. Overall, the structure is not unlike Nintendo's Legend of Zelda series, especially in the 2D segments of the game.

When in the book, Jot and his surroundings will be depicted like a hand-drawn cartoon book. Here, he will make his way across the pages of the book solving puzzles, platforming across hazards, and getting stronger by upgrading his abilities. While going from point A to B, players will be encouraged to poke around at every nook and cranny to gather "lightbulb" collectibles and artwork tucked away in secret areas.

Collected artwork can be viewed in the menu (Image via Devolver Digital)

These can then be used at shops to get new abilities and upgrades. When not fighting, Jot and the team will be presented with puzzles of various types to keep them engaged. This ranges from simple tasks like finding a lever to hit to more complex endeavors like word puzzles.

These are the highlights of the 2D segments in The Plucky Squire, which allow players to change their surroundings by removing a word and replacing it with another found in the book. This sees Jot physically pick it up from the sentence. For example, replacing "Water" in a sentence describing a bay on the Boogie Beach level with "Ice" will freeze the water and allow Jot to cross the water body with ease.

It's a smart mechanic that impresses whenever it pops up (Image via Devolver Digital)

The concept will be familiar to fans of the critically acclaimed indie puzzler Baba Is You. While the word puzzles here are nowhere as complex and rather linear in comparison, they still add welcome variety. Out in the 3D world, however, things are a little different. While Jot retains all of his abilities and moveset, he also gains the power to manipulate the storybook physically using magic gauntlets.

So while he can initially flip pages to carry objects (or even words!) between two separate areas, later he is also able to tilt the book to make certain objects in the pages slide around to help him progress. He also gains access to "Stamps", which can stop elements inside the book objects or create a multipurpose bomb that can not just break open objects but also be used as a weight.

This never gets old in The Plucky Squire (Image via Devolver Digital)

While the core action-adventure formula is retained regardless of which dimension Jot is in, the Zelda-esque "dungeons" make way for platforming segments in the 3D realm as well as a few stealth sections. Jot will hop and dodge across fortresses of toys and dollhouses as well as stacks of everyday objects like rulers and books, similar to Hazelight Studios' co-op adventure It Takes Two.

2D elements once again make an appearance here as Jot enters the surfaces or walls of objects to scale them à la Super Mario Odyssey or Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. The merger of these 3D and 2D aspects is seamless. The Plucky Squire manages to stand apart from the rest despite heavily drawing inspiration from these titles.

Slice, dodge, and jump

Melee combat is fast and simple (Image via Devolver Digital)

The combat in The Plucky Squire is expectedly basic as this is a simplistic game at its core. Jot can run, dodge roll, and swing his sword. Abilities purchased from the shop can be upgraded by spending lightbulbs. These include a spin move, jump slam, and sword throw, all of which will be useful against the myriad of unique enemies the game has in store.

From basic enemies like trolls and hat-wearing mice to larger-than-life bosses, the game knows how to pull off a spectacle using all the tricks up its sleeve. One fight may see the player partake in a rhythm game to ward off incoming projectiles and reflect them at the enemy, while another boss will see Jot hopping in and out of both worlds to stop deadly whirring blades using the Stop Stamp and striking at weak points.

These minigames further exemplify how The Plucky Squire is not afraid to mix things up and do so in a polished, fun fashion.

Graphics, performance, and sound

The Plucky Squire is a looker in both 2D and 3D (Image via Devolver Digital)

Unlike modern cutting-edge titles such as Black Myth Wukong or The Talos Principle 2, The Plucky Squire utilizes Unreal Engine 4 tech. It is a stellar showcase of visuals while not being too demanding on resources. The game was reviewed on the following specs:

CPU: Intel Core i7-12650H
RAM: 16 GB DDR4
GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti (8 GB)
SSD: 1 TB NVME

At native 1440p max settings, I got well over 70-80 FPS in the 3D world and frame rates over 100 FPS in the 2D realm. That said, I did encounter some bugs. One saw Jot get stuck in a piece of geometry, while another had a "key" needed to progress get stuck out of bounds.

The Plucky Squire does not have a manual save system so players will have to rely on the checkpoints to quit and reload the area, which may have them replay a small portion of gameplay. A more egregious issue cropped up during the sci-fi shoot-em-up minigame where Jot was unable to use his gun. Thankfully, there is an option to skip minigames, so that kept me from having to restart the section.

In conclusion

A journey full of new twists and familiar turns (Image via Devolver Digital)

A few hiccups aside, The Plucky Squire is a charming tale that's worth experiencing for fans of both action-adventure and platformer fans. The 2D/3D shift coupled with varied mechanics and minigames keeps things fresh just when you feel that the gameplay has overstayed its welcome. The cheesy dialogue or wordy expositions may not be for everyone but everything that lies beyond it is a joy to indulge in.