Another Crab’s Treasure review – Crustaceans and patience

Making a splash.

Anytime that I felt frustrated with the occasionally grueling combat of Another Crab’s Treasure, I would just take a look at Kril, the little hermit crab you play as, and I would remember the adorable art style and playful dialogue and how it perfectly counter-balances the difficult combat encounters.

Another Crab’s Treasure is a funny and colorful platformer with elements of a Soulslike action RPG. Somehow, these two elements meld perfectly in the world that Aggro Crab created, and I’ve enjoyed much of my time with it. There’s a lot more than meets the eye here, and despite having to reteach myself the patience required for difficult bosses and annoying slip-ups, I’ve had a great time playing Another Crab’s Treasure.

Under ‘da sea!

The vibrant and silly nature of its trailers are what initially caught my attention. When I think of a Soulslike, I think of a dark, grim game set in a fantastical world of terrifying monsters. Another Crab’s Treasure is the total opposite end of the spectrum, but it doesn’t hold back in its detailed designs.

It isn’t just a boring old ocean, this is an ocean littered with human trash. That mountain you have to climb is just a cooking strainer, and those city buildings over there are liquor bottles repurposed for these adorable and hilarious sea creatures. Aggro Crab went above and beyond with the art direction of this game, and the same goes for the character designs as well.

A lot of games hope to create memorable feeling and looking bosses, and I will definitely remember most of this game’s bosses by how they looked, talked, and moved throughout the battle stage. I also really appreciated the plethora of shell designs that Aggro Crab thought of. Not just from a gameplay perspective (each shell had a different defensive stat and ability), but from a visual perspective. You are repurposing trash from humans that would somehow end up in the ocean. The designs are endless.

Tougher than you think

Don’t take this lively color palette and quirky character design for granted, Aggro Crab didn’t skimp out on making the combat as difficult as a Souslike should be. The majority of enemies you face are crustaceans or fish who can still kill you just as easily as the big bosses can. I had to think about each swing I was taking and whether I should take three swings, or two and get ready for a dodge.

Unfortunately, I find myself relying heavily on the dodge system and much less on parrying. To parry, you have to hold block, and then unblock as soon as you want to parry. It’s an unusual parry mechanic. Typically you just hit a button when the time is right. So this threw me off, making me rely heavily on dodging. Other than barely using parry or blocking, I liked the system set in place that unlocks more abilities as you get through the first introductory bosses and chapters in the game.

The bosses were the real tough part, as I died numerous times and would never beat a boss in the first five attempts. Despite my frustrations at dying from a slight miscalculation of the timing of my dodge or getting too greedy with my attacks, I kept going back, refusing to turn on any assist mode options. Not that the assist options are a negative thing, because I wholeheartedly applaud Aggro Crab for implementing such detailed assist options. But each death made me push myself to go back one more time. Eventually, I’d win, and that rush I’d feel in the last few moments before its death was exhilarating.

A Souslike for beginners and experts

Another Crab’s Treasure is both a Souslike for players who have never played a Souslike before and a Souslike for experts of the genre who still want that difficulty. Although there are no difficulty options, there are plenty of assist options that can aid players who still want to enjoy what this game has to offer without worrying too much about combat. The options are very detailed, such as the ability to reduce overall damage taken, improve the parry window, or even lowering enemy health.

This gives players like myself, if I do decide to switch one on, to enjoy Another Crab’s Treasure just as much as the next person. What may be shocking to players is the ability to give Kril a gun that will one-shot all enemies, even bosses. Although this may sound counter-intuitive to how a game like this should work, it backs up the humor behind the game’s premise and gives you the option to just skip a boss you loathe without a single consequence.

This kind of catering to both types of audiences is something I’ve yet to see in a game before. It didn’t immediately make me want to turn those options on and speed through the game as an all-powerful crustacean, but knowing the options were there if I ever needed them pushed me to avoid them if at all possible. For me, these options made me want to try going as far as I possibly could without falling back on them. But if I do end up turning them on at some point I won’t feel bad about it since I can toggle exactly the things I’m struggling with and fine-tune my experience.

Build experimentation

Since there are dozens of shells available to you, but you’re typically limited to the shells you can pick up around you, you’re forced to try new shells. Despite me liking one shell at the start of the game I quickly realized that I shouldn’t get attached. Figuratively. If I died and couldn’t pick up my lost microplastics, I’d also lose my shell. If that shell broke and I was far away from where I could find it, I’d have to find a new one quickly.

You’re forced to move from one shell to the next while also getting a feel for their special abilities. Each shell has an ability you can trigger by expending Umami Charges. These charge as you hit enemies, so it’s like Kril’s special move, but it’s tied to the shell. Some shells could heal you, while others would hinder enemies, and some would buff you. As soon as you got used to one shell, it’d break and you’d have to pick up the closest one.

This fast-paced shell experimentation was fun and the idea of having a full collection of discovered shells tickled a part of my brain that didn’t want to miss out on a single thing in Another Crab’s Treasure. Apart from shells, you can also experiment with Stowaways, which are items that you can store in your shell to give you stat increases. Since you have a limited amount you can carry at once, it forces you to try certain combinations that can work best. They’ll also only activate when wearing a shell which also urges you to pick up the nearest shell as soon as possible.

A breath of fresh air

Another Crab’s Treasure feels like a breath of fresh air in the Soulslike genre. While it can certainly get frustrating during tough combat sections, it’s never overly difficult to the point of impossibility. It’s humorous, vibrant, and playful while being tricky and clever with its combat and enemies.

Another Crab's Treasure

Another Crab's Treasure is a colorful and lively platformer that's also a tough action RPG with Soulslike combat. They juxtapose each other perfectly, and I had a fun time discovering shells, collecting microplastics, and defeating grueling bosses.

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