Stacks on Stacks (On Stacks)

Genre: Arcade / Puzzle

Players: 1-2 Co-Op / Competitive (Local)

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Review:

Stacks on Stacks (On Stacks) is a family-friendly Arcade-style game with Puzzle elements released on PC in 2020 and ported to Nintendo Switch in 2021. This game has players stacking up and balancing randomized blocks as they fall in a 3D space, trying to accomplish various goals.

Graphically, this game isn’t going to impress anyone, featuring extremely simple 3D visuals paired with static cutscenes of crudely-drawn characters. I suppose you could argue that this game is intentionally aiming to have an amateurish look that makes the game seem like it was designed by children, but if so they did such a good job that it’s hard to tell the terrible aesthetic was intentional. At the very least, the game’s simple music is surprisingly catchy.

The gameplay here, at its core, is very simple. Random blocks fall, you need to place them without any of them tipping over and falling off of the platform (or platforms). This gameplay is done in a somewhat clunky manner. Players have a limited ability to rotate the blocks or spin the camera, both only at 45-degree angles. They also have a limited ability to speed up a falling block to move faster. This lack of fine control really makes placement here feel sloppy, and the lack of camera control can often make it difficult to judge the size and dimensions of a falling block against those that have already been placed. Mechanically, this game just has some serious issues that really should have been addressed before release.

However, despite the terrible visuals and janky nature of the game, it still manages to charm through sheer creativity and variety. While placing blocks, you might just get a rolling die that causes one of various odd effects to happen – odd-shaped blocks matching a theme, silly mini-games, and so on. What’s more, in the game’s campaign, there’s a variety of different level types to ensure that players can never quite guess what they’ll be doing next. In most levels, you’re stacking blocks to reach a height goal, but in one level you have to fit as many blocks as possible on the platform without going under a designated height. In another level, you’re stamping out seeds after they fall before they can sprout into weeds. Then of course you may find yourself in a level with odd and uneven ground, or a small platform, or multiple tiny platforms.

Without this variety, Stacks on Stacks (On Stacks) would be a decent but flawed game with a good but simple concept executed somewhat poorly. But with the wild variety injected into the experience, it can get away with a lot of its poor design elements thanks to how entertaining it remains throughout. As a result, if you’re looking for a lighthearted Arcade-style Puzzle experience, you may find Stacks on Stacks (On Stacks) to be worth trying out.

tl;dr – Stacks on Stacks (On Stacks) takes a simple family-friendly Arcade-style Puzzle premise of stacking various blocks without any of them falling off-stage, loses some points for its poor presentation and lacking controls… but gains back a lot of points due to its sheer variety and creativity. This game certainly has its flaws, but it nevertheless manages to be a thoroughly entertaining experience despite these flaws.

Grade: B-

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2021 Game Awards:

Runner-Up: Best Arcade/Party Game

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