Metal Cute Solid
So far the Apple Arcade initiative has been an eclectic mix of indies, but with so many on offer it’s very easy to miss those rare gems.
Sneaky Sasquatch is one of those games you might scroll through on the way to a Shantae or an Exit the Gungeon. That would be a mistake, since it’s more fun than both.
Sneaky Sasquatch (iOS)
Developer: RAC7 Games
Publisher: RAC7 Games
Released: September 19, 2019
MSRP: Part of Apple Arcade ($4.99 a month)
Somewhere, someone’s dream game involves taking control of a cheeky Sasquatch and robbing parkgoers blind, Yogi Bear style. I want to meet that person, because I wish I came up with the idea first.
Sneaky Sasquatch is a very chill, very relaxed adventure with a Zelda-like overworld. You’ll roam around, complete a critical path goal (finding a treasure map and saving the park instead of Hyrule), grab occasional sidequests, buy helpful overworld-impacting items, and generally just mess about on a constant basis. It’s part adventure, part comedy, all cuteness.
The game’s cold open puts you in the shoes of an adorable Sasquatch who’s hungry as hell. But wait! The only food is at the campground, and a stern warning from the ranger tells us that their kind isn’t welcome, on account of scaring off the campers. Thank goodness our hero is nimble, as they’ll use their stealth skills to walk about, steal food to eat (and maintain a health meter), and sell to a bear for straight cash.
Sneaky Sasquatch‘s loop works like this. You get a full day to roam, grabbing food, finishing quests, buying upgrades, accruing fat stacks, in any order you like. At the end of that cycle you’ll have to end up at home (either by walking there or using a fast-travel map item), then get up and start the process over again. The Zelda comparison is even more apt when you account for finding specific spots in the open world you can only interact with while wielding a certain item, tasking the player with remembering that location when they grab the appropriate gear the next day.
Stealth operates by way of a circular sight and sound meter around NPCs, which is extremely easy to read. The system is also lenient (shirking frustration), but if you do get caught you’ll enter “Ranger Danger” mode, where the aforementioned antagonist will try to capture you and send you on your way. It’s fairly easy to escape, and you have a lot of options at your disposal, like golf carts that allow you to make a run for it, GTA style, so it’s mainly a way to add some tension into the mix.
Instead, Sasquatch errs on the side of tranquility. There is a point to it all, with short narrative breaks to boot, but the main goal is to explore and incrementally work your way up to new items and thus, new paths. The pacing is mostly on point and the overworld is big enough, so there are very few moments where you’ll find yourself slipping into boredom.
It’s especially hard to be bored when you embark upon some of the crazier sidequests: like sneaking into the ranger’s house late at night to cook orange juice on his stove, and set the smoke detector off to appease a crafty fox for money. The ridiculousness slowly ramps up too, to the point where you’re wearing human clothes and interacting with people. I played on the Apple TV with an Xbox remote, and while not every game looks great blown up, Sasquatch‘s cartoony style translates wonderfully. Paired with the lovely soundtrack and silly sound effects on a booming stereo, it’s even more impressive.
Sneaky Sasquatch was a pleasant surprise. It’s not a game-changer by any means and I wish it was expanded upon a bit (maybe for a full console release), but it’s a great family experience. Come into it with an open mind.
[This review is based on a retail build of the game through an Apple Arcade subscription purchased by the reviewer.]
