Some games just aren't a good fit for the Switch. It's a sad truth, but a truth nonetheless. Rock Of Ages 3: Make & Break falls into that category, we're sorry to say. The most egregious problem to be found in this Nintendo Switch incarnation is, quite simply, a lack of suitability to the handheld format.
It's the text. There's plenty of it here, and it's all entirely too small. We found it almost unreadable even in docked mode, but undocked? Eyestrain city. Forget it. We checked the menus to see if it could be increased in size, but as far as we could tell, there's no such option (unless it's there but written even smaller, invisible to the naked eye).
That's just the HUD, tutorials and objectives, of course. You could muddle through without them, if the actual game were fun enough to make that an appealing proposition. Sadly, it isn't, and – again – a large part of that is down to the ill-fitting nature of the thing. What do you do in Rock of Ages 3: Make & Break? Ultimately, it's a bizarre combination of Super Monkey Ball-esque obstacle courses with a relatively rudimentary tower defence component, and neither element is satisfactory.
Let's talk about the presentation; in a word, it's exhausting. It's got a Terry Gilliam-style Monty Python cut-out kind of vibe that's certainly unique, but ultimately compounded our frustration with the game by being a little charmless. The cutscenes in the "Break" mode (effectively its campaign – we'll talk about "Make" a little later) might have been pleasant if we knew they would be followed by a solid video game, but as it stands they're just wearying reminders that not only are we still playing Rock of Ages 3, but we're not even really interacting with it.
The rock-rolling sections of the game run well enough, but aren't particularly fun. Weaving around the courses in order to cross the finish line first requires speed, but even the earliest stages have deceptive corners and feel designed to trick you into careening your rock over a cliff, effectively removing any chance of your finishing the stage in time.
It's tricky to balance your speed with your manoeuvrability, and sure – that's the game. But it's more frustrating than anything, with hazards all over the tracks feeling arbitrarily placed and designed to irritate. There are plenty of variants and modes (time trials, for example) in this campaign, but none of them really solve the game's problems. It can occasionally be momentarily exhilarating when you successfully navigate a particularly fraught path, but it's just leading to more of the same.
The tower defence component feels like an odd match, but here it is. It's often a pretty rudimentary take on the genre, with you building your indeterminate-looking defences to prevent enemy rocks from reaching your castle, then challenging the enemy's course in the more standard rolling mode. We found it a very awkward slice of gameplay indeed, with it being pretty unclear how to even get started.
There's a tutorial, sure, but it's not very extensive. Eventually, we figured it out through trial and error, and we're disappointed to report that this didn't make the proceedings any more enjoyable. The graphics here are so muddy, it's a challenge just to figure out what's going on. Fussy controls make putting together your defences a chore at almost all times, too. Again, there are different variations on the basic tower defence theme, but not one of them is without these same frustrations.
It's not just "Break", of course, there's also "Make"; effectively, a powerful and relatively easy-to-use level editor that lets you share your creations with other players online. It serves its purpose but said purpose is creating new stages for a game that isn't very much fun. We don't think it's going to set the world on fire, exactly, but credit where it's due; the editor is surprisingly versatile and friendly. You can jump into your levels and test them quickly and easily, but – again – we're not sure why you'd want to. Still, if you find yourself enjoying Rock of Ages 3, this at least guarantees a way to access a theoretically unlimited reservoir of stages – as long as the servers stay up.
Graphically we found the game samey, unimpressive, and often blurry. The visual design – while not to our personal taste – deserves praise for delivering something different, but it's all just so self-consciously "quirky" that we couldn't help but find it irritating. The music is rather good, with strong arrangements of classic music. One of the said arrangements is a version of Mozart's Rondo alla Turca, which just made us wonder if we'd ever be seeing Lemmings on the Switch.
Conclusion
Rock of Ages 3 failed to impress us on almost any level. It's definitely a game with character, and it could feasibly work its charms on you, but in its drive to be different and unusual it seems to have neglected to be fun. Still, it certainly has an audience; broadly speaking, you don't get to a second sequel without your game mattering to someone. If you can muscle through the frustrations, you might be able to roll with Rock of Ages 3, but with so many other worthy titles on Switch, we can't say we'd recommend it.
Comments 34
Reminds me of this thing from Earthbound.
I am happy to report that this means I did not know there was a Rock of the Ages 2.
@Giygas_95 Easy there Giygas! Those look cute, but they pack quite a punch! lol
The whole strategy element of these games always threw me off. it should have just been about destroying ancient buildings with rocks, in some kind of super monkey ballish theme. it tries to do too much.
UI text is so small it's barely legible what cracks me up this is such an issue on every platform. some ps4 xbox games are even more guilty your sitting bloody right next 55" tv to read the thing defeating the purpose of a big tv.
@TG16_IS_BAE Oh right, I often forget that my user name and avatar are actually Giygas or I guess Giegue if you wanna get technical. 😂
So I take it that Rock of Ages 2 is WAY better than Rock of Ages 3?
This review is a little frustrating for me. I can understand why Gipp disliked the core gameplay, but that same gameplay was praised by Reseigh-Lincoln in his “8” review for a Rock of Ages 2. Similarly, the “Python-esque” humor is praised for the second game but not the third.
Because there is no reference to the second game in this review, I don’t know how the two compare. Would Gipp also think the second game was poor, or is this third one just worse?
I have enjoyed the second game, despite its flaws in terms of graphics and occasional clunky mechanics. From what I have read, this third game seems more of the same, with the level editor being the main addition. I just wish there was more information regarding how this sequel builds on the last one.
@HypnoVike
This is honestly what I want to know: If I enjoyed the second game (Which I adored) is it worth while buying the third or has not enough been added to justify?
I have no interest in this game but everytime I see the rock it reminds me of the moon in Zelda Majora's Mask. :/
Spooky boulder!
I've been watching ACE Team's work since Abyss Odyssey came out on PS4 in 2014. Adding every one of their switch games to my wishlist.
Loved the style and premise of Abyss Odyssey, even if the execution was a tad clunky in places. Then I finally bought Rock of Ages II when it went on sale for $7, and it was a huge let down. Not engaging enough, overly complex and disorganized, etc. Can't say I'm surprised that Rock of Ages III failed to capture any attention.
@doctorhino so you want it to be an overpriced mobile game.
@Wool_Sheep I don't have 3 but from what I have gathered from other people it's still mostly same but all the levels apparently seem to be made using the level editer and don't have the magical greatness roa2 levels had.
@Giygas_95 nice lol. So is this like bad monkey ball because I think I'll just stick to ai ai (probably spelled wrong but...)
@edgedino Exactly, because it's either an overpriced mobile game or has tower defense sandwiched in. Great point.
@Wool_Sheep @Solomon_Rambling Yeah I liked the 2nd game, is this better or worse than that?
The thing that was lacking for me in the 2nd game was no local multiplayer.
@Solomon_Rambling Those are some very important points indeed!
@Giygas_95 Still one of the best end bosses in an RPG to date.
@Xylnox Which is a great Skyrim mod, by the way.
@TG16_IS_BAE I'll have to check that out. Thanks!
The idea of this game is amazing, being a boulder smashing anything in your path, but I played the first game from this series and was bored to tears. I wonder how this version compares to the first game from the series. From this article, it sounds like not much has changed
@edgedino
I have actually played the whole series, but not that much on the 1st game.
It seems that Rock of Ages 3 builds up from Rock of Ages 2 with more courses, obstacles, boulders, and the major feature of content creation.
I somehow enjoyed the concept of hybrid approach, and the 3rd game's introduction levels somewhat helps newcomers who don't know about the game through first the rolling part, then the tower defense, and finally meshing two parts together.
My main concern from the 3rd game is that the performance is not as optimized compared to the 2nd game, but the new content and level editor helps remedy some technical issues.
Also, I enjoy the 3rd game's story mode map compared to the 2nd game because I can go anywhere in ROA3 and not be stuck in
ROA2's predefined and sometime squiggly paths.
@Solomon_Rambling Why should that frustrate you? They're two different people, with two different opinions, about two different games.
Yes! Let's have Lemmings on Switch! I've got the digital PSP game on my Vita, but I'd love to have it or a new Lemmings game on Switch. I'd even like to have Lemmings 3D on Switch (enjoyed that one on PS1 back in the day).
@60frames-please lemmings is owned by Sony when they bought Psygnosis
@TheDanslator
Sort of. They are two different people representing the same website. They have two different opinions which seemingly contradict each other. These are two different games but part of the same series.
My frustration stems from not knowing how Rock of Ages 3 compares to Rock of Ages 2. I would hope the review would touch upon how the sequel improves (or doesn’t) on the previous game. Essentially, how does the series go from an “8” score to a “4?” From what I can tell, Gipp simply disliked the core concept.
I understand two people will have two different opinions, but for a series, it is sometimes helpful for the same reviewer to review all of the games.
I hope that makes sense. At the end of the day, what may frustrate me may not frustrate you.
@JohnshiBRPG oh ye sindeed on the additions but some people liked the path system cause appearently it added more to a pre defined story.
@Wool_Sheep I remember seeing the 2nd game on sale and not buying it because I heard about a 3rd game being in development. It is even more confusing when 2 different reviewers gave the games very different scores without a reference to either game.
As someone very interested in this game I will just wait until either game is on sale.
@doctorhino So I'll probably get Lemmings on Switch around the same time I get wipEout...
@doctorhino ...and Jumping Flash! I'd love Jumping Flash on Switch. Sony should at least put it on PS4 and PS5.
@Solomon_Rambling It does. I get wanting to know how it stacks up. But it's also helpful for newcomers like me to know how the game rates on its own merits, outside of that broader context. Sometimes having a fresh take is helpful.
Can't wait to play it on Stadia on Aug 14th!
I loved the first two Rock of Ages games, and I was certainly excited for this one. Unfortunately, even I'll admit that this was a letdown. The physics just feel worse compared to the previous one, and I feel like the AI has some stupidly unfair advantage over the player in how they work. The worst part, at least for the Switch version — And I'll admit that it seems exclusive to me since no one else seems to bring it up, but still — is that the game runs as well as a cube boulder going uphill. The game stutters and slows down all the time, even crashing at points, and the one Humpty Dumpty minigame is often nigh unplayable. It seems like it's decent on PC, but still, it makes no sense when prior games seemed to run completely fine on the console. It honestly feels like they rushed this, which is a shame, given they did seem to have some ambitions for this. Oh well... I think it's still worth playing, but just not compared to the other two (And definitely not on Switch).
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