Animal Well delighted, surprised, or terrified me with something up-to-date at every turn, as it confidently leapt from one idea to another all the way to its conclusion. That novelty wore off toward the end of its 8-10 hour runtime, as I trod the fresh sheen of familiar ground, but it never lost its rich, gritty heart—even as occasional difficulty spikes exacerbated that staleness. Still, its tense atmosphere is inherently compelling. Lit by dangling lanterns and animated by lovingly animated animals and Rube Goldberg-esque puzzles, but overshadowed by an ominous synth tone reminiscent of Twin Peaks’ haunting soundtrack, Animal Well establishes itself with a occasional, masterful sense of place without missing a beat.
In Animal Well, you play as a little worm who needs to get back home. Like other Metroidvania games like Super Metroid or Hollow Knight, your path is far from linear; you have to collect items and power-ups that unlock up-to-date abilities that—sometimes literally—open up-to-date doors.
Initially helpless, the cute little bug became a distant memory as I added to my collection of movement and puzzle-solving tools. These fun tools, like the frisbee, bubble wand, yo-yo, and Slinky, underscore the wacky nature of Animal Well. Each tool has clever alternate uses that encouraged me to rub against what I previously thought were its barriers in stimulating ways. Instead of awkwardly rubbing against the seams of this Swiss watch of the world, I felt like I was making fun of creator Billy Basso—although he was probably privy to my plan.
I first became aware of the multi-faceted power of these tools when I was fighting one of Animal Well’s ghosts after setting off firecrackers to scare one of them out of a obscure room. You can’t usually check the map in the obscure. But setting off those firecrackers suddenly lit up the room enough for me to check the map. These kinds of immersive touches add layers of flavor and life to his world.
Expanding and going beyond what you thought possible in Animal Well reveals a wealth of secrets and surprises, like collectible Secret Eggs. Expanding your oval arsenal opens up brisk travel options and even more trinkets to expand your game. Basso’s love of museums and architecture shines through Animal Well’s richly realized world. Featuring special landmarks like tile murals of rabbits, capybara figurines, and rats running around in hamster wheels that power The Well’s mystical mechanisms, these flourishes (sometimes literally) electrify any room.
It subtly balances the right amount of cheekiness with its surreal feel. At one point I found myself searching for the next corridor to explore. Assuming I could at least find an egg, I dropped into a gigantic pit. Hitting the ground with an unceremonious “thunk,” I landed near the three penguin-shaped bushes I had passed minutes earlier. Landing again on the decoration after the fall, with the only way back up being a grueling climb, gave it meaning and life. I felt like its creators were mocking my flightless avatar.
Animal Well hides its fangs in the protagonist’s helplessness: there’s no way to fight off the larger predators that chase you. Usually, moments like these underscore the game’s clever approach to progression. But sometimes, they bring to delicate its greatest flaw. As with many genre classics, the only checkpoints here are save points. With only a handful of them scattered around the map, I spent a lot of time revisiting rooms I’d already explored from top to bottom. This would be devastating for a game with a lesser sense of style, but Animal Well’s rose-smelling is so sweet it’s little more than an inconvenience.
Bursting with life, secrets, and charm that surprises and delights, Animal Well captured my full, undivided attention. Even at its most hard moments, it left a mark of fondness in me with its immersive soundscape, distinct yet familiar pixel art style, and malleable, mold-breaking approach to exploration.
