Mutant Mudds Collection + Xeodrifter

Genre: Compilation / Platformer

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local), Online Leaderboards

.

Review:

Mutant Mudds Collection + Xeodrifter, released on Nintendo Switch in 2023, is a Compilation of the named titles, which were previously released on Nintendo Switch in 2017 and 2018 respectively. While most of this bundle’s contents are Platformers, they still vary quite a bit – Mutant Mudds Collection is a Compilation containing multiple traditional Platformers along with a Falling Block Puzzle game, while Xeodrifter is a Metroidvania. The main thing these games have in common is they share a developer and publisher, the game company Atooi.

I have previously reviewed both of these games. Here is what I thought of both of the games in this collection:

Game	Genre	# of Players	Score
Mutant Mudds Collection	Compilation / Platformer / Falling Block Puzzle	1-2 Competitive (Local), Online Leaderboards	A-
tl;dr Mutant Mudds Collection is a compilation of the two Mutant Mudds Platformer games and a Puzzle game, with all three being good entries in their respective genres, and the collection overall being a fantastic value.
Xeodrifter	Metroidvania	1	A-
tl;dr Xeodrifter is a Metroidvania game that really does a good job of feeling like a Metroid game, although it’s a bite-size experience that lacks the scope of the actual Metroid titles.

Wow, I wrote those reviews a while ago. Look how short those tl;dr descriptions are! Er… anyway, I really enjoyed both games, finding each to be truly excellent within their own genres. Honestly, I feel like this Compilation comprises all of Atooi’s best works (save for Hatch Tales/Chicken Wiggle, which has had a Nintendo Switch version stuck in development hell for years now).

Okay, so the quality is here, what about the value? Well, that’s kinda’ tricky to answer. As it stands right now, these two games separately cost $30, and the bundle containing both is $25, which seems pretty nice, right? Well, prior to 2022, Mutant Mudds Collection was $5 cheaper than it is now, and both games started going on sale far less often then too. In fact, at various times over the years, you could get these games separately at a combined price of $2.50… but no longer. So while this bundle is indeed currently the best way to buy these games, that’s only because the prices of the other games have been made worse over the last year and a half, not because this bundle is in itself such a great deal.

Because of this shady reworking of the prices, I feel less enthusiastic about recommending Mutant Mudds Collection + Xeodrifter. Don’t get me wrong, all of the included games are great, and this is technically cheaper than buying the games on their own, but that’s only because the prices have all been reworked to give you a worse deal overall. If you haven’t played these games yet, I do think you should play them. Just understand that while this package is the best deal you’re likely to get on these games right now, it’s not a good deal.

tl;dr – Mutant Mudds Collection + Xeodrifter is a Compilation of the two named titles, and while these are all excellent Platformers of one kind or another, and this bundle is currently less expensive than getting the games separately, that’s only because the individual games have had their prices raised, meaning you’re still overall getting a bad deal. If you don’t have these games yet, this bundle is still well worth getting, but I can’t give it the same high recommendation I would without all the gross trickery at play here.

Grade: B+

^{You can support eShopperReviews on Patreon! Please click HERE to become a Sponsor!}

^{This month’s sponsors are Ben, Andy Miller, Exlene, Homer Simpin, Johannes, Francis Obst, Gabriel Coronado-Medina, Ilya Zverev, Jared Wark, Kristoffer Wulff, and Seth Christenfeld. Thank you for helping to keep the reviews coming!}