You can never go wrong with a good puzzle game. They’re a great way to kick back, relax, and test your brain power in a way that feels fun and unique. Many puzzle games have dominated the industry for years, dating back all the way to Tetris in the 1980s. Over the past few years, indie games incorporating puzzle elements have become increasingly popular. They have managed to take puzzle elements to new heights, offering a fresh new take on the genre.
One such example is Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure. Releasing for the Nintendo Switch on July 25, Furniture & Mattress has created a title that combines the puzzle genre with a beautiful style and unique gameplay hook that is new and fresh. I’ve had the opportunity to review Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure, and I found it both addicting and delightful, with a few minor problems here and there that keep it from being perfect.
A Simple Premise With An Addictive Hook
Arranger begins with the protagonist, Jemma, as a child. She’s dropped off at a mysterious location by an equally mysterious figure who is able to move the world around her by walking around. Years later, Jemma leaves her home to explore beyond the barricaded confines of the only place she’s ever known. Despite the change, she’s eager for the adventure and to find a place where she’s welcomed despite her strange powers.
Along the way, of course, things go awry. She encounters a new town where people have their own issues as they are plagued by an enigmatic race of monsters fueled by “Static,” a mysterious energy source. Of course, being the protagonist in a puzzle game, Jemma must solve the problems of every person she meets by manipulating the world, as she is a titular Arranger.
What does it mean to be an Arranger? Well, Jemma can manipulate the world and move objects by walking, sort of like a conveyor belt. When she moves, objects move with her unless she moves to a different tile. Oftentimes, puzzles will require players to move objects out of the way or move objects from point A to point B. One of the most common puzzles you’ll have to partake in that demonstrates this mechanic involves one of the many static monsters.
At points, you’ll be forced to move a sword towards a stationary monster that is blocking your path. Sometimes, it’s simple: just move the sword as if you’re on a treadmill toward the creature. Other times, you’re forced to take consideration of your surroundings and really think about how Jemma is moving an object, where she’s moving it, and on which tile. In these situations, you’ll be forced to take advantage of an extra mechanic that isn’t as clearly telegraphed: the ability to walk through walls.
Let’s say there is a straight horizontal path. If you walk to the very edge of that path, you walk through it as if there’s an invisible portal and are sent back to the beginning of the path. It’s a strange mechanic that often left me more confused than anything. At the beginning of the game, there are pieces of shrubbery and a dead tree stump.
I was convinced for thirty minutes that I had to bring the shrubbery to the stump to create some kind of tree to get past, but no. Instead, I had to walk through an opposite wall to end up on the other side of the stump. There are a few other problems here and there, but what certainly isn’t a problem is the gorgeous art style.
A Charming Exterior Working With A Compelling Interior
The art style of Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure feels like the best parts of Link’s Adventure and other classic Nintendo games for the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS. Oftentimes, there are storybook-style scenes that convey the story in a truly remarkable manner. At those points, I’m reminded of the kind of animated shows that would populate Cartoon Network and Disney XD in the 2010s.
That style is only one piece of the puzzle. The game performs wonderfully and looks absolutely beautiful whether you’re playing in docked or handheld mode on the Nintendo Switch. Personally, I played the entire game on a handheld, and it looked sublime. It really did feel like I was back in my childhood, playing on my Game Boy Advance.
Another piece that adds to the game is the characters and writing. Each has a unique design and personality, even if that personality feels like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon. NPCs either are almost comically mean or self-aware to the point that Jemma will say lines like, “You mean you don’t have to deal with puzzles on a daily basis?”
The writing never takes itself too seriously. At one point, I swear I caught Jemma unironically saying “lol” in a dialogue box. There are some absurd dialogue moments that were just surprising enough not to take me out of the experience completely. Further, the game never stops to explain the origin of the Arrangers, merely poking fun at the implications of Jemma potentially moving a character off a ladder while they are working on an important task.
While this can mean that the story and narrative feel very cliched, it’s a breath of fresh air compared to a lot more complex puzzle games with deep lore and world-building. Instead, Arranger is designed as a short, bite-sized adventure that you can reasonably complete in one sitting. I enjoyed this balance quite a bit, and I never thought at any point that this game should have more in-depth story elements. That said, this game is not without flaws.
Limited and Filled With Small Drawbacks
During my time playing Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure, I did notice some key problems. First, the puzzles are sometimes a bit too obtuse. As mentioned before, the wall-phasing mechanic doesn’t mesh well with the others, and I often couldn’t tell if the game wanted me to think four-dimensionally or simply move from point A to point B without overthinking things.
Now, there is an option to skip puzzles if you’re struggling, and I took advantage of this a few times when I could not figure certain things out for the life of me. However, I should note that my game did a hard crash at one point while trying to skip one particularly difficult puzzle. This did cost me a bit of progress, but not too much.
In the long run, these are minor nitpicks. What is a major issue with the game, though, is how limited it feels beyond its puzzles. As mentioned previously, the game is only five hours long. This isn’t inherently a problem: short games allow for less fluff and filler, and I never felt like the game needed more areas.
The problem begins when you realize that there is nothing else beyond those five hours. There are no collectibles, there is no post-game or any bonuses beyond completing the game, and while there are optional puzzles, I found no indication that there would be any reward if you completed these puzzles.
Whether or not you are comfortable spending $20 on a five-hour puzzle adventure with no other bells and whistles is up to you. Personally, I did wish there was a little bit more to the experience, even if it was something as simple as alternate costumes. Regardless, Arranger is still a delight, flaws and all.
Pure and Wholesome Fun
Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure is simply fun. Sometimes, that simplicity can backfire, leaving you with only five hours of puzzles that often feel complicated just for the sake of being complicated. Most of the time, though, it is addicting in ways I can’t really describe.
With every completed puzzle, I would get a dopamine surge that is only replicated by the best puzzle games on the market. That joy was helped by the charming art style, comedic writing, and characters that felt right out of a childhood cartoon. Plus, despite one crash, Arranger runs like a dream and looks beautiful, even in handheld mode. It’s a great time whether or not you’re on a short flight or wanting to play a game on your TV during a particularly bad case of cabin fever.
While I can’t say Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure is going to be everyone’s cup of tea, nor could I suggest purchasing the game at full price due to its limited content beyond the base game, I do ultimately recommend giving it a try at some point. Even if you find casual enjoyment in puzzle games, you’re bound to take something away from the experience, even if it’s just a broad smile from ear to ear.
