Lil Gator is a small game that deserves a short but sweet review. It’s a game of atmosphere, of feeling young and hopeful. It’s a joyous experience for those deadly tired of the way life feels now. It’s a time machine — and a slightly psychedelic experience.
Games that strive to imitate the sense of childlike wonder are nothing new. In fact, not that long ago we reviewed Lost in Play, which did the same thing but in a different genre. Unlike that game, which is a point-and-click adventure, Lil Gator is a 3D platformer. The story is as simple as they come: our protagonist, who in fact, is a lil gator, desperately wants to play with his big sis who, unfortunately, got a case of the adultitus. She is busy and simply can’t play. That won’t do! Now it’s our turn to make her forget all about her project.
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As a platformer, Lil Gator is adequate. Where it succeeds is the story. The sibling story is both relatable and heartfelt, and the humor the game has is fantastic: it is, without a doubt, one of the funniest games I played in a long time. The amount of references alone is quite impressive!
Lil Gator is a platformer, but even more so, it’s a collectathon. Collect this and that, craft something, solve some tasks, do some climbing. There’s fighting, too, although of a make-believe variety. In a way, the game reminds me of Rugrats, but with animals, making it much better.
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It’s not a perfect game. Lil Gator feels like a proof of concept or a result of a very lengthy jam. It forgets some essential elements like a map, leaving the player lost and confused. Sometimes physics don’t work, and sometimes the characters speak too much. But other than that, it succeeds at what it tries to do.
Lil Gator is as charming as they come. It’s a perfect escapist game with loads of references, good humor, and decent pacing. But it’s more of an experience than a challenge: you can’t really lose, and the platforming is fairly basic.
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