Shiftlings

 Xbox One
User Score
5.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 4 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 4
  3. Negative: 1 out of 4

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  1. SuperkenGaming
    Mar 11, 2015
    8
    Shiftlings
    A puzzle game that will have you pulling your hair.
    There isn’t much of a story here, an alien drinks some block hola cola, gets gas, and you pass the gas back and forth between your partner who is connected by a hose for an intergalactic game show. This is just a puzzle game, an obstacle course, something to play to challenge yourself more so than to experience. There are 5    Shiftlings
    A puzzle game that will have you pulling your hair.
    There isn’t much of a story here, an alien drinks some block hola cola, gets gas, and you pass the gas back and forth between your partner who is connected by a hose for an intergalactic game show.
    This is just a puzzle game, an obstacle course, something to play to challenge yourself more so than to experience.
    There are 5 worlds in total, 10 levels in each world all progressively getting harder.
    At the end of each world there is a boss level which is just like the other 9, but with moving parts.
    The puzzles are very trial and error, and for the most part are forgiving.
    You can try as long as you want to figure a level out,
    I consider this stage of the game a testing the waters portion. While you are also testing the waters you can grab collectibles for even more challenge, but the collectibles highlight the greatest problem and frustration with this game.
    For a puzzle game, solutions rely far too often on physical character timing rather than problem solving and environmental timing.
    Too often I felt like I had to get lucky to grab certain collectibles.
    Going through this game for the 30 hours it took me to be the first platinum obtainer in the universe, made me feel more lucky than it did smart.
    I never felt like I was clever when I finally got a collectible that I was button mashing for 40 minutes to get.
    The sole problem with this game is that you are rewarded for figuring things out with frustration to execute it, really bringing down the enjoyment level.
    The characters themselves handle great though, it definitely takes some time getting used to switching characters and switching back and forth between using 1 character and 2 simultaneously.
    This never becomes frustrating, but does take practice.
    After you have finished the 10 levels in 1 world, you unlock the next world and you also unlock time trials and leaders boards which to me is really when the fun kicks in, for selfish trophy hunting reasons, id prefer that time trials unlocked as soon as you beat the level so you can master each with repetition, but its not too big of a deal to go back after you have defeated the worlds boss.
    You can also play co op locally and online…
    As you can guess in a game all about timing and puzzles, playing with someone else can do more harm for your sanity than good, not to mention the potential leg, so play with a friend at your own risk.
    Overall I enjoyed my time with shiftlings, if there is a shiftlings 2 I can only hope that they focus more on problem solving than throwing in luck elements.
    I want to feel challenged, not frustrated.
    For what it is Puzzle Platformer 8/10
    Overall 8/10    … Expand
  2. CasualTerror
    Jun 12, 2015
    7
    Shiftlings is the second game to come out of Sierra Entertainment since Activision reopened it in fall of 2014, the first being Geometry Wars 3. Developed by Rock Pocket Games, Shiftlings is a goofy side scrolling puzzle-platformer.

    You play as two idiotic alien janitors who are “fixing” machines, while unwitting starring in a reality show. I say fixing but it’s really just turn a value    Shiftlings is the second game to come out of Sierra Entertainment since Activision reopened it in fall of 2014, the first being Geometry Wars 3. Developed by Rock Pocket Games, Shiftlings is a goofy side scrolling puzzle-platformer.

    You play as two idiotic alien janitors who are “fixing” machines, while unwitting starring in a reality show. I say fixing but it’s really just turn a value and pull a lever. One of the aliens that you play drinks the “fizziest soda in the universe” and ends up with a bit of a gas problem; inflating his space suit. Since the both the aliens suits share air through an umbilical cord the “gas” passes through and inflates one or the others suit. Yep the game is just one big fart joke and that’s fine. Farts are funny. That’s also where the main mechanic in the game is, you have to navigate the levels with one alien inflated and having to switch who is inflated to get through obstacles. You also only control one alien at a time. Whichever alien is inflated is also the heaviest for some reason. This can but used to haul the smaller one up on platforms and then he can jump on top of the fat one and use him as a bouncy castle to get to a higher platform. When moving only the fat one can pull the other which can be an issue when you are trying to go up a onto a lift and only one makes it on and the umbilical cord is cut and killing them.

    Host/announcer of this wacky reality show would fit right in on a Nickelodeon kids game show. He jokes can be funny at times but can get repetitive quickly, especially if you repeatedly die in the same area and have to restart from the checkpoint. In between worlds he has some snarky comment about how dangerous the next world is and how it’ll be very entertaining to watch.

    It’s not until about mid-way through when you start to actually come across enemies. They enemy robot that’s wander the levels have saw blades and giant hammers. Who gives a robot a saw blade? That just asking to get killed. You can jump on theirs head to destroy them but only if it’s the big alien. Here’s a little tip: use the small alien to jump above the robot to get the height; then inflate him as he’s coming down to destroy the robot.

    Shiftlings does have two player co-op. As you can expect one player controls one alien and the other controls to the second. You can no longer use the B button to switch characters (makes sense, right?). Both players have the ability to inflate and/or deflate the other. That can make for a back and forth of inflating and deflating both of you fighting for control. The skill that become the hardest, that I found while testing the co-op, is the one where one has to jump on the other and use the fat one as a trampoline but you also have to walk across the screen at the same time. In single player, you can hold down the Left Bumper and both character move at the same time. Not the case in co-op, obviously.

    Over all Shiftlings is a pretty ok game. If you really enjoyed games like ‘Splosion Man series then you’ll like this game.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
63

Mixed or average reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. GameOver.gr
    May 1, 2015
    70
    The repetitive levels and the complete absence of a decent story are balanced by the great challenge and some clever puzzles you'll find in this unique puzzle-platofmer.
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  2. IGN Italia
    Mar 20, 2015
    63
    Shiftlings has some clever ideas, unfortunately drowned in faulty controls and frustrating movements.
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  3. We Got This Covered
    Mar 19, 2015
    60
    Shiftlings often ends up feeling like a by-the-numbers puzzle game, with its only redeeming factor coming in the form of co-operative play.
    Read full review
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