It’s no wonder that The Legend of Zelda (Zelda) has inspired many indie developers in the past years, after all the series has gained a strong following. The player starts with basic equipment, but as they progress further, they find items in dungeons that can help solve puzzles. On top of that, the formula for obstacles keeps going strong and the top down perspective gives a wide view of each area. I personally prefer this aesthetic than the one seen in Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which I didn’t like. Another series that fans have been clamoring to return for a long time is the Mother series, a beloved RPG with a interesting cast of character and adventures. Reviere is a game that plays homage to both of the aforementioned games, but doing it in a way that gives the game its own identity and it shows that these types of games should come more often.
In Reviere you play as Tai, a young lad that travels to Toromi Island, a fictional island in New Zealand, to enjoy summer vacation on his grandparents house. As he is traveling towards the island, his mother tells him a story about how Heke fished out the island. For this, his jealous brothers threw him from the boat, and as he drowned, he cursed his brothers, so that they would meet their end on the island. Their spirits still roam the island…. or so the legends say. While at his grandparents house an earthquake occurs and after a quick trip to the store to get a lantern, his grandfather asks him to go to the basement to find his old stories book. Tai enters the basement cricket bat on hand and his adventure begins. That is the story in a nutshell, Tai must calm down the spirits across six dungeons using a variety of tools found in them and to solve puzzles by activating switches, the usual for someone accustomed to Zelda games. I must say that this game could be considered the ultimate Zelda game, since it includes an improved item-selection wheel, which makes it easier to swap items real-time. This is a welcome addition since there are some dungeons in which you must use all the acquired items in order to progress. That is something that I like, since in Zelda games some items are used only during specific sections, and that is it, I’m looking at you lens of truth. I like the variety of items you can encounter in this, from the cricket bat, which is your main weapon, to a yo-yo that stuns enemies like the boomerang in Zelda, to a dart gun that serves as a bow of sorts, and even your pet rock, Stephen.
The game looks really good and at first glance it seems you are playing Earthbound. However, like mentioned above, the game plays like a Zelda game. I really like how each area looks, the pic above makes me remember the forest where the Master Sword is located in a Zelda: Link to the Past, but here it’s full of kiwis. The enemies are not that varied, so you end up getting tired of killing bees, rats, and the occasional ferret. Each boss you encounter is a fun challenge but none are that hard. I like that the game has a chilled out vibe that allows you to enjoy it more, I mean have you ever fought your washer machine with a cricket bat? Fun times indeed. The music is really good and besides the main campaign, there is also a Nightmare mode, for those who think the game is too easy, and for completionist there is the feather album to complete, as well as many different mini games to enjoy.
Bottom Line: Reverie Sweet As Edition is a good game that shows the developers commitment to bring an unique adventure, while paying homage to Earthbound and Legend of Zelda, I definitely recommend it to any Switch owner.
A Review Code was provided for this review.