June 22, 2023 - Day 173 - NewPlay Review
Total NewPlays: 191

Game: ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove!

Platform: Epic Games Store
Release Date: Mar 1, 2019
Library Date: Oct 14, 2022
Unplayed: 251d (8m8d)
Playtime: 34m

Way back on the 1st of January when I set out on this misbegotten journey, I wrote in my toot that I was open to suggestions.

Today, on day 173, a friend suggested "Have you played ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove!"

I had not, however, I did not have a copy of the game in my Steam library, nor do I have an unused Steam key.

"I'll buy it for you!"

Friendo, adding to my pile of unplayed games does not reduce the size of the pile. However, I considered the offer, and took a look at GG.Deals, because the last thing I wanted was for friendo to pay full price.

It was at this point I made a terrible discovery. The game had been given away free on the Epic Games Store last October. As I have collected most of the games given away by Epic, the chance was... yeah. I do own a copy of the game.

EGS is the anti-Steam. It takes anything that's good about Steam, and does it in the worst possible way.

Steam handles a large library well? EGS handles a small library terribly.

Steam makes moving a game to a different drive incredibly simple? EGS requires 15 years experience in tech support.

Steam makes buying a new game almost dangerously easy? EGS makes it laborious enough to question whether you even want the *free* game in your cart.

The free games given away on Steam have literally become little more than demo versions, to see if I like the game enough to either use the Steam key I might already have, or buy the game on Steam.

Yes, I despise using EGS so much that I've bought games on Steam that I already received for free on EGS. I resent the exclusivity arrangements that force me to use EGS for Tony Hawk 1/2 and Alan Wake Remastered.

Of course, collecting all these free games on EGS means I have *multiple* piles of shame, across different launchers (I won't even get into GOG).

However, this is a review of TJ&E:BITG!, not EGS, and now that I've gotten my EGS rant out of the way on Mastodon (as seen in less detail on ) this is the first game from my EGS pile of shame this year.

TJ&E:BITG! is an isometric platformer, that has you searching islands, & shaking trees looking for bits of an exploded ship.

The main thing I'm looking for in a game is fun; maybe it was in one of the trees I didn't shake.

Having never played any of the previous three(!) games, I felt utterly bewildered for most of my playtime.

I understand that people love this game, I just don't understand why. Respect, though. If it's your cup of tea, more power to you. It's most definitely not mine.

I'm sorry, friendo, but I'm glad I saved you the purchase price, because for me ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove! is a big:

1: Nope

#ToeJamAndEarlBackInTheGroove #Isometric #Platformer #MastodonGaming #Gaming #Project365ONG #Project365 #NewPlay