90
A Monster’s Expedition is a brilliant little puzzler. It gets incredible mileage out of a simple mechanic and manages to use it in unexpected ways. The game’s Zen-like presentation, open-ended exploration, and sense of humor create a relaxing environment that soothes away the frustrations found in other puzzle games. I do wish I had a little assistance in the late-game portion, but maybe I’m the only one who needs it.
100
There’s something really special about a well-crafted puzzle game. The difficulty has to be just right—taking mental equity to solve but not so easy as to be dull. There needs to be a clear logic to the puzzles throughout that acts as a foundation for each sequential one to build off of. What elevates it even further is world building and music design that sews it up into a tight, cohesive experience. A Monster's Expedition’s quick hits of small puzzles passes all of those criteria with flying colors, and you owe it to yourself to give it a look.
80
A Monster’s Expedition shakes up the puzzling genre with an enormous map, combining tiny individual puzzles with an empowering sense of exploration. Gorgeous graphics and witty writing mean it mostly succeeds, let down only slightly when its ambitious scale becomes daunting.
9
One thing I’ve learned over the years as someone both on the programming end of software and on the consumer end is that creating experiences that are “simple” by nature is often anything but. With that in mind, there’s a certain effortless quality to the clean and well-planned rule progression and puzzles in Expedition that I really appreciate and admire. With minimal direction and some simple experimentation you’ll pretty understand each new element added to the rule mix as you simply try to make your way around a series of islands, enjoying some unusual artifacts with amusing descriptions along the way. It’s light but still challenging, for the most part establishing and then carefully following a slow and steady progression in complexity and difficulty the further you get. A great example of work invested to convert what could just be a puzzle game into more of an enjoyable puzzle experience worth checking out. ****/2021/08/mini-reviews-august-11th-edition.html
8
Quirky puzzler with gentle background music and some very challenging parts. Despite the relaxing vibe, I did get frustrated several times, but it offered just enough escape to keep me coming back for more until I finally reached the end, probably around 8-10 hours in. Once I completed the game, there were many islands I left unreached but I find I no longer have the motivation to go back and figure out how to get there. Fun, beautiful, (mostly) relaxing little game - just don't be in a hurry to finish the final island!
10
A really smart and relaxing puzzler that keeps surprising with innovative mechanics and has great humor.
A Monster's Expedition
Released On:
Aug 5, 2021
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
92
User score
Generally Favorable
7.7
My Score
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Metascore
Universal Acclaim
92
100% Positive
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Aug 31, 2021
100
There’s something really special about a well-crafted puzzle game. The difficulty has to be just right—taking mental equity to solve but not so easy as to be dull. There needs to be a clear logic to the puzzles throughout that acts as a foundation for each sequential one to build off of. What elevates it even further is world building and music design that sews it up into a tight, cohesive experience. A Monster's Expedition’s quick hits of small puzzles passes all of those criteria with flying colors, and you owe it to yourself to give it a look.
Aug 17, 2021
100
Overall, A Monster’s Expedition is magnificent. The structure perfectly suits itself to portable play with its interconnected set of islands that you can slowly chip at while on a break or while grabbing a coffee. This release gets everything right and I hope it does well enough to warrant a physical release. If you’ve wanted a relaxing and well-designed puzzle game on Switch, look no further than A Monster’s Expedition which is one of the best games I’ve played this year on the system.
User score
Generally Favorable
7.7
71% Positive
17 Ratings
17 Ratings
17% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
13% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
Nov 2, 2021
10
A really smart and relaxing puzzler that keeps surprising with innovative mechanics and has great humor.
Dec 17, 2021
9
One thing I’ve learned over the years as someone both on the programming end of software and on the consumer end is that creating experiences that are “simple” by nature is often anything but. With that in mind, there’s a certain effortless quality to the clean and well-planned rule progression and puzzles in Expedition that I really appreciate and admire. With minimal direction and some simple experimentation you’ll pretty understand each new element added to the rule mix as you simply try to make your way around a series of islands, enjoying some unusual artifacts with amusing descriptions along the way. It’s light but still challenging, for the most part establishing and then carefully following a slow and steady progression in complexity and difficulty the further you get. A great example of work invested to convert what could just be a puzzle game into more of an enjoyable puzzle experience worth checking out. ****/2021/08/mini-reviews-august-11th-edition.html
Sep 2, 2021
90
A Monster’s Expedition is a brilliant little puzzler. It gets incredible mileage out of a simple mechanic and manages to use it in unexpected ways. The game’s Zen-like presentation, open-ended exploration, and sense of humor create a relaxing environment that soothes away the frustrations found in other puzzle games. I do wish I had a little assistance in the late-game portion, but maybe I’m the only one who needs it.
Aug 31, 2021
80
A Monster’s Expedition shakes up the puzzling genre with an enormous map, combining tiny individual puzzles with an empowering sense of exploration. Gorgeous graphics and witty writing mean it mostly succeeds, let down only slightly when its ambitious scale becomes daunting.
Aug 21, 2021
75
If you're looking for a chill albeit tricky puzzler with an excellent sense of humour then I highly recommend playing A Monster's Expedition. Its blend of exploration and clever puzzles makes for one stand-out tree-toppling experience.
Nov 24, 2021
8
Quirky puzzler with gentle background music and some very challenging parts. Despite the relaxing vibe, I did get frustrated several times, but it offered just enough escape to keep me coming back for more until I finally reached the end, probably around 8-10 hours in. Once I completed the game, there were many islands I left unreached but I find I no longer have the motivation to go back and figure out how to get there. Fun, beautiful, (mostly) relaxing little game - just don't be in a hurry to finish the final island!
Sep 2, 2021
8
Atmospherically brilliant, with deceitfully complex puzzles with a great balance of new mechanics and exploration. The writing and humour is hilarious.
