Finding Teddy 2: Definitive Edition

Genre: Metroidvania

Players: 1

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Review:

Finding Teddy 2 is a Metroidvania that was originally released on PC in 2015 and made its way to Nintendo Switch in 2020. I’ve no idea what exactly makes this the “definitive edition”, as I haven’t played the original and the game’s description doesn’t say.

Interestingly, the first Finding Teddy appears to have been a point-and-click Graphic Adventure originally released on mobile devices all the way back in 2013, and its story is summed up in the prologue of this game. The short version: picture the plot of Monster’s Inc., but instead of monsters using doors to sneak into kids’ rooms to scare them, it’s the King of Monsters stealing a child’s teddy bear because he needed a friend, and the child adventures into the monster world to rescue her beloved toy. In the game’s sequel, the King of Monsters has been usurped from his throne and now possesses the teddy bear to ask the child for help.

Given the terrible legacy name this game bears (not only is “Finding Teddy” a horrible title, but you’re not even looking for the Teddy in this game, he’s with you from the start), and the age of the release, one of the first early surprises here is just how good the presentation is. This game uses some really nice pixel art graphics with good animation and a lot of personality to them, really bringing to life the fantasy monster world you find yourself in. This is further enhanced by the game’s quiet, understated soundtrack, which does a great job building the atmosphere of magical mystery this game’s locales evoke.

While the presentation here really surprised me, the gameplay has some surprises in store as well. Firstly, I have to point out that this game repeatedly makes nods to the first two Zelda games, both in its intro sequence (clearly an homage to the first Zelda’s intro), as well as in your character’s moveset, which comes with a very Zelda 2-style upthrust, and you even fight shielded enemies who raise and lower their shields to defend against high and low attacks.

However, the really clever thing this game does is its language system. Early on, players come into possession of a codex that allows them to store the words the inhabitants of the monster world speak, and they also get runes that correspond to syllables that form those words, and they must combine the two to solve puzzles in the game. For example, one early barrier is a massive guardian who asks you what you want, and to respond properly, you must know the runes and word to say “pass”, to which he’ll respond with “word magic” prompting you to answer him again. Well, what’s the magic word? It’s cute little puzzles like this that really set this game apart from the rest of the genre.

There are some frustrations that this game has as well. Much as with Zelda 2, your attack reach in this game is pretty pathetic, leading you to get hit a bit too frequently. Unlike Zelda 2, enemies get invincibility frames after taking a hit that keep you from being able to downthrust-jump them into oblivion. And while puzzles like the one above are cute, they can often be a bit head-scratching, meaning you may want to refer to a walkthrough from time to time.

However, the biggest frustration here has to be this game’s unusual map. Now just to be clear, this game does have a map, but it is so convoluted and awkward to read that you’ll often be puzzling over it to try to figure out where you need to be going. This is in part because it doesn’t really seem to follow a consistent logic – keep heading in one direction and you may very well be finding yourself walking in a circle, take a door and you could end up on the other side of the map, or a self-contained room.

If you have the patience for Finding Teddy 2’s flaws, I’d recommend giving it a try, as this is one of my bigger surprises of 2020. It’s not the best Metroidvania ever, but it’s beautiful, unique, and tries some interesting things with its puzzles that are pretty clever. Just don’t be afraid to Google a walkthrough if you get stuck.

tl;dr – Finding Teddy 2 is a Metroidvania that has a young girl journeying to a monster world to save her friend. The presentation here is superb, and the puzzles are refreshingly original thanks to this game’s unique language system. Just be aware that the game’s map is convoluted and frustrating, and the puzzles can at times be a bit unclear. If you’re not bothered by cryptic clues (or okay with using a walkthrough), this is a charming entry in the genre well worth trying.

Grade: B

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2020 Game Awards:

Runner-Up: Most Overlooked, The “Wow, this game was way better than I expected!” Award

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