Ruffy and the Riverside - the best retro platformer game in 2025?

After a long 9 years of development, the colorful platformer Ruffy and the Riverside has finally seen the light of day! I have been following the game's development for the past two years, and I was thrilled to receive an email that our portal was approved for a review code.

Immediately, I started downloading it via the mobile app and happily turned on my PlayStation 5 console after receiving the notification that the game was installed. My first impression after the intro menu was more than positive. It felt like I had traveled back 25 years to the era of the original PlayStation!

The world itself is large enough to allow for exploration. The open world design without invisible walls is excellently done. The map is vast and full of surprises. Along with the standard collection of coins used to purchase upgrades (in the form of extra hearts and attribute improvements), the young hero Ruffy, with the help of his friends like the purple dragon Špira, assists the local inhabitants and uncovers numerous secrets on the map.

The Beginning of an Adventure

The game combines light platforming action, a charming story, and innovative mechanics in a visually playful environment, providing a relaxing yet imaginative experience for players of all ages. The hand-drawn graphics are visually impressive, and the effort put into them is noticeable. During mission progression, the greatest obstacles will be various beasts, with the main focus being on puzzles rather than combat for all the inexperienced players. The influence of new games from The Legend of Zelda series is particularly evident during puzzle-solving.

Any resemblance to Super Mario Odyssey is purely coincidental

Compared to other platformers released in the past few years, Ruffy and the Riverside features a unique SWAP mechanism that allows players to copy and paste textures from the game world to solve puzzles and assist friendly residents of Riverside. For example, it is possible to freeze the sea and lakes, turn stone blocks into wooden boxes, transform waterfalls into ivy, etc. Among other interesting features, the game allows you to ride hay bales across the open world and use your creativity to discover hidden secrets and collect various collectibles!

A Journey into the Unknown

During gameplay, I particularly enjoyed the difficulty level tailored for younger players, while the game itself is simple and engaging for seasoned veterans of this genre. As is standard in modern platform titles, game over is nonexistent, meaning there is no frustration if things go awry. I was most impressed by the attack that resembles the attack animation from my favorite series for the original PlayStation. I also enjoyed floating with a friendly bee companion named Pip.

I am floating!

The biggest complaints I have are as follows: digital control buttons are not supported and L2 and R2 for camera rotation are missing, lack of a mini map on the screen during gameplay, inability to easily reset puzzles, inability to swim, a smaller number of destructible objects on the map than expected, and particularly disappointing - nonexistent support for the DualSense controller!

Collecting butterflies is one of several additional activities in the game

All in all, Ruffy and the Riverside is an excellent title for fans of platform games. Older players will reminisce about numerous adventures experienced on PlayStation / PlayStation 2 consoles, while younger players will enjoy the beautiful graphics, exploring a vast world, melodious tunes, interesting gameplay mechanics, and solving numerous quests and side quests.

The end of one adventure! Let's hope the development studio will immediately start working on a full-fledged sequel.

The game is available on all current platforms (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC) at an affordable price. Feel free to join Ruffy in the exciting adventure of a lifetime to prevent the mischievous villain Groll from destroying the core of the world and plunging Riverside into chaos.

A copy of the game (PlayStation 5 version) for review purposes was provided by the development studio Phiphen Games LLC