
Fresh from the studios of Squanch Games and the brainchild of Rick & Morty co-creator Justin Roiland, Trover Saves the Universe has made a somewhat surprising appearance on the Nintendo Switch. Does it capture everything that made Rick & Morty so hilarious? Do you need a high IQ to understand this game? Let’s see, shall we?
Those of you who are fans of Rick & Morty (and this reviewer will confess to being only a very recent convert) will know exactly what to expect from this game, quite frankly. For the uninitiated, however, the show is famous for its bizarre, off-the-wall and dark humour with an intentionally sloppy and often ad-libbed delivery, and that is exactly what you get here. It almost feels like it could be Rick & Morty: The Game at times. This might not be a game you’d want to play around your grandma, however, as it certainly doesn’t hold back with the swearing, and the sheer amount of profanities is often key to the humour. Make no mistake, this isn't a kids game, despite what a cursory glance at the screenshots might suggest.

Humour is, of course, highly subjective – and Rick & Morty's particular brand is might not be for everyone (especially if you have a low IQ, supposedly). Thankfully, this game is much more than just jokes and profanities – it’s also a blast to play. At its heart, what we have here is a puzzle-platformer. You can jump, you can hit things (in this case, with a lightsaber – yes, lightsaber), general gameplay involves either fighting enemies or solving puzzles, you gradually unlock abilities along the way, and have to collect plenty of items (in this case, coloured babies) along the way. So far, so Banjo-Kazooie, then. There’s a twist, however, and this is where things get complicated.
Even if you knew nothing else about Trover Saves The Universe, it’s painfully clear as soon as you start that it was designed for VR. Squanch Games focuses heavily on VR as a studio, and this outing was primarily developed with PlayStation VR in mind. It didn’t require VR per say, but it is evident that most of the game's mechanics are designed with immersive virtual reality as the prime consideration.
So, how well does it make the transition to the Nintendo Switch? We’re delighted to report that it works very well indeed. Much of this comes down to the fact that this is still fundamentally a 3D puzzle platformer, so the core mechanics essentially remain unchanged regardless of how you’re viewing things. You see, Trover Saves The Universe actually has two lead protagonists. You play as the titular Trover, a purple humanoid who you control throughout the game. However, you actually view the action through the eyes of a ‘chairopian’, a member of a chair-bound race of people who lack the ability to move on their own accord.

This chairopian is the one who controls Trover within the game using a game controller, though in practice the chairopian serves as a stationary camera while the player controls Trover. Since the chairopian cannot move by themselves, the only way to move the camera (i.e. the chairopian) through the level is by directing Trover to the next warp point, which allows the chairopian to move forward so Trover can tackle the next section of the stage.
This is presumably a mechanic designed to overcome some of the limitations associated with movement in VR and sounds cumbersome on paper, but in reality, it actually works surprisingly well. Not only does it add an interesting twist to the otherwise-familiar platforming gameplay, but also means that your view becomes even more vital to seeing where you need to progress to, spotting the important collectable coloured babies, and generally making progress throughout the stage much more visible.
We said that the chairopian is stationary, but we actually lied – they can somehow move up and down into the air. This helps give a much clearer view of the play area, and is essential during combat since it allows you to see enemies across the area and any who may be attacking you from a distance – some enemies have ranged attacks and will use them excessively. Speaking of combat, your primary method of attack is using your aforementioned "don’t-sue-me-Disney" lightsaber as well as being able to jump. Without wanting to spoil too much, players will gradually unlock other ways to attack using said lightsaber, as well as mechanics to grab and throw things, which help with both ranged combat as well as solving puzzles.

The structure of the game is pretty standard fare. After the chairopian's dogs are stolen and inserted into the eyes of the villainous Glorkon, the chairopian teams up with Trover. Both Trover and the chairopian happen to have complementary skill sets, with neither character able to move by themselves without the aid of the other, and thus form a friendship out of necessity. The duo travel from world to world in their ship to a variety of different terrains, with missions usually involving committing involuntary mass murder and upsetting plenty of people along the way.
The characters you meet are irritating by design, meaning that their subsequent fates feel somewhat less tragic. Each world has a good balance of combat and puzzles, neither of which are particularly challenging but enough to be fun and engaging. Worlds are generally completable in a single sitting, and the game features an insanely generous checkpoint system meaning most players will breeze through them pretty quickly. In fact, the game itself winds up being pretty brief, with only a handful of worlds until you reach its conclusion. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing since the journey comes to an end before the whole thing outstays its welcome. The gameplay isn’t exactly the most nuanced in the world, but the ride is still a blast while it lasts.

While the game plays extremely well despite the lack of VR, this is one game which would have benefitted massively from gyroscopic aiming. The right analogue stick is generally a good replacement for head tracking, but the character’s perspective being based around VR means that there were numerous occasions where we expected gyroscopic aiming to be present and instinctively attempted to aim using it.
It can be a little cumbersome to use the analogue stick for more precise movements to, for example, pick up hidden coloured babies or to grab and throw objects. This is also another Unreal Engine 4 game suffering from frustratingly small text sizes at times, a common issue amongst games this generation. Some adjustments to aid readability from a distance would be greatly appreciated, especially when the dynamic resolution can affect the text at times in handheld mode.
Conclusion
Trover Saves the Universe is a surprisingly fun little game. The humour will not be to everybody's tastes, and while the core gameplay is extremely strong by itself, your appreciation for their style of comedy will ultimately determine whether or not you see this one through to the end. But for us, this was a hilarious twist on the puzzle-platformer genre which we can highly recommend for anybody looking for something a bit more weird and twisted.
Comments 34
Mr. Poopybutthole
"So... it looks like it only got a seven out of ten, Rick."
"Big fu-URP-king deal, Morty, you little dipsh-URP-'t."
"Gee Rick, you're not mad?"
"Not at all, I-I mean, these guys got their Mario Galactic Odyssey seven remake or something, I can't even-URP-even care."
"You seem awfully chill about this, Rick. You're up to--"
"No no no, Morty, I'm-I'm not up to anything Morty, you gotta trust me."
"Last time I did, you blew up PushSquare's headquarters."
"Of course I did, but you're too stupid to understand my reasons. See, that Shogun Rock Paper Scissors guy over on that site, he's..."
"Was..."
"Is, was, whatever, Morty, point is, I could put up with him being an intolerable di-URP-ick towards port beggars, but then he started being harsh on the game, and I kind of felt like shooting him."
"That was disproportionate--"
"... back in time."
"You're awf--"
"In the womb."
"Jeez Rick, you're awful! That's why I-I-I never want to be on an adventure with you again! And how on Earth are you able to browse Nintendo Life anyway?"
"The site is, like, a total riot. And besides, it's better than PushSquare anyway."
"No, I mean, how on Earth are you able to browse a Nintendo Life from another Earth?"
"INTERDIMENSIONAL INTERNET, BI-URP-ITCH!"
"This means they should have another version of Push Square up and running."
"Gee Morty, some--someone's brain cells have finally gotten through puberty Morty, point is?"
"Lemme check it out."
"Go f--"
"LEMME check it out, I'm curious!"
"Fine, you little waste of DNA, have it your way. Why did you want to--"
"It got the same score as the Nintendo Life review. Seven outta ten. And it wasn't written by ShogunRok. Writer is some Quintumply dude."
"Nintendo Life review or...?"
"Push Square review, Rick. The Nintendo Life review is written by this @sj33 guy."
"And why are you telling me this?"
"I dunno, Rick, you--you're the insane nutjob among us. What are you going to do, kill them both in that other Earth as well?"
"Please, M-Morty, I-I'm crazy, I mean, I might be crazy, I might have been drunk as sh-URP-it when I killed those other guys, but I have standards."
"Uh-huh."
"What."
"You do, huh."
"Well, I have more standards than you anyway! Now greet those internet weirdos that are checking us out via the comment section."
"Seriously?"
"Hey, you Nintendo Life users with an L! That's losers, in case you can't spell! Like what you see?"
"Rick, NO!"
"Well, how about you get a load of--"
"KEEP YOUR PANTS ON!"
"YOU CAN'T FORCE ME, DUM--URP--BASS!!"
"Rick and Morty" and "hilarious" should never be in the same sentence.
Looks like if you have PSVR then that’s the version you should go for. Good review, I’ll pick it up on PS4 then.
I enjoyed season 1, but too many people started liking it so I quit watching it. Can’t wait to finally catch up a couple years after the final episode airs and people have moved on!
@Noid "Bubsy profile pic" and "valid opinion" shouldn't be in the same sentence either but I'm not complaining
jk
@AlexSora89 That was a trip.
@personauser93 Or, better still, watch what you enjoy and don't worry about what other people are doing.
@personauser93 Just watch what you want, it’s not like you have to really get involved with any sort of community. I enjoy plenty of shows that I would concede are awful and plenty of shows that other people hate. It’s all opinions.
@personauser93 I too let other people enjoying something I like force me to stop enjoying that thing I like.
Overrated garbage like the lame show!
@Noid I agree! Such an overrated show!
@personauser93 I can understand not wanting to associate with a particular fandom (get less weird looks from people that way) but a bad fandom or something getting to popular is no reason to stop enjoying something
I watched some of a playthrough and it looked a bit bare bones, tbh. Especially when the humour ran out and hearing the same Rick and Morty voices didn't feel great because it just felt like they were over used. I'm hoping for a Rick and Morty game in something of a similar vein but more shooty shooty and vibrant worlds like in the show.
Do I have to have a really high IQ to enjoy this game?
@personauser93 Ditto, lol. The people I know who love this show are also the same variety who think telling the same 9/11 and Holocaust jokes over and over again ISNT annoying, who post edgy mc-edgelord memes, draw upside crosses and swastikas everywhere, and will also hit on your girlfriend behind your back. Another case where the fan base kills the show’s appeal for me, in my experience.
I liked Justin Roiland’s work in LawBreakers tho.
@personauser93 - Curious why you only like something when not as many loved to watch it. Feels very self-deprecating. I mean, I have seen people do this with Archer too.
@SnesSwitch - I mean, people like Metroid Prime too, so I guess everyone has bad opinions.
I find it odd that someone would complain about a game or show if they know it's not to their taste...just remember, there are better uses of your time folks!
People who don't like Rick and Morty are simply not intelligent enough to understand it. Sorry, it's true. Anyone who denies this only reveals their ignorance further.
Bought this game last night, looking forward to trying it out.
@SuperWeird If you remember, lemme know how you like it. It sounds fun, but the non-VR thing has me on the fence. I got the Amateur Surgery game and it definitely feels like it was better in VR instead of plain controls.
Give the game Pool Party a look if you haven’t already. I had fun with it for awhile
@thiswaynow You have it figured out!
I like Rick and Morty, but I don't think i will be playing this one without a deep discount. Especially considering I have been delving deeply into Dauntless.
This is the best thing to come out of Rick and Morty BY FAR.
https://youtu.be/v6yg4ImnYwA
This game was definitely made for VR
I played it on PC in VR when it came out, definitely fun, definitely VR centric. That said, a big portion of the enjoyment comes from whether or not you enjoy the humor.
It was surprising how fun the gameplay was, but I'm not sure how well it would translate. If you're a Rick and Morty fan it's definitely worth your time, even without VR, since it sounds like the implementation didn't ruin it. But dang, good VR is really fun, and this was good VR.
Watched Rick & Morty and thought it was cool for a chuckle or two, but people claiming that one would have a low IQ if they didn't like or get Rick & Morty, is equivalent to Death Stranding and Kingdom Hearts fans getting mad that people don't get being a UPS delivery man as gameplay, or having the most pretentious story in videogame history be so convoluted.
I'll probably pass on this one.
Have this for my Oculus Rift and apart from the zany humour I found it very generic, uninspired and by the numbers. It's like a typical and pretty average third person platformer from the early 2000s, and little more to make it special.
@Dakotastomp
"Y-y-you tell me, weirdo. I'm not even done with my crystals--"
"PUT YOUR PANTS BACK ON, RICK!"
@AlexSora89 LMAO just as funny as the actual show. Seriously, I'm dying from laughter over here. '_'
(Honestly I think even Rick in the show wouldn't act like this.)
@TechaNinja That had me chuckling for a good two days.
@Dakotastomp GET IN THE CAR MORTY GET IN FKIN CAR MORTY
@TechaNinja YOU LEAVE OUR FKIN FAMILY ALONE DAD! HE AIN'T GOIN ON ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR ADVENTURES
@Dakotastomp
The funny thing about Rick is that he's such a broken wreck you could expect just about anything from him.
Which is why I went a bit beyond my usual NL comment-related boundaries for the skit.
@nessisonett Yes, I tried it on PC without VR. It's extremely awkward to play it that way and each and every move is a constant reminder that it's not meant to be played without VR.
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