KeyWe is like Overcooked, but at the post office and with the birds!
KeyWe is like Overcooked
What a time for co-op games! No, we are not referring to the classic action games shoulder to shoulder, together against the alien hordes, but to those products that explore the mechanics in a way that is actually different from the usual. Needless to mention the richest and most amazing of all, the very recent It Takes Two, is in fact too different from this KeyWe we are about to tell you about.The game by Stonewheat & Sons, which from the name looks like a tilers company instead of a software house, is much more reminiscent of the thrilling Operation Tango, or even better that little great masterpiece known as Overcooked. Here, KeyWe is precisely Overcooked, slightly more complex and varied, but set in the post office world.
Kiwi is not a fruit
KeyWey: Each shift is characterized by different minigames postal service Instead of preparing progressively more complex delicacies, in KeyWe we will be asked to send letters, use telegraphs, affix postage stamps and, among other things, carefully select the destination of any packages. The protagonists of KeyWe, as you can already imagine from the phonetic joke of the title, are not two normal people but birds belonging to the kiwi species.These types of birds are an old acquaintance in the world of video games, as a kiwi is the star of one of the fundamental titles of the 80s, the classic and always beautiful New Zealand Story by Taito. We are not afraid of denials when we say that in the world only three categories of people know of their existence: the ornithologists who study them, the New Zealanders who live with them, and the videogame enthusiasts. Is a kiwi on the screen always a good omen?
Don't lick the stamps!
KeyWey: by playing it will be possible to unlock many elements with which to characterize our birds. The whole game takes place inside the post office of Bungalow Basin, where the two kiwis Jeff and Debra will have to work hard to fulfill every request. It is not just about sending letters, packages and heavy crates: the variety of tasks extends to numerous activities that will require different forms of cooperation between the two fliers / players.In some levels, for example, we will be called to issue warnings relating to particularly intense and dangerous weather events, hopping on the right letters of a teleprinter until the warning is completed; in other situations we will have to compose messages with the serial killer method of cut and paste.
The surprises are different even if we cannot yet know if their number will prove to be sufficient to keep users' attention and enjoyment high, but we will discover these details only during the review. The progression of KeyWe is practically identical to that of Overcooked, where each level represents a work shift with its particular game mechanics. Each shift of Jeff and Debra lasts only a handful of very intense minutes, during which we will have to try to satisfy as many requests as possible, even paying attention to possible dangers such as exposed cables, short circuits to be repaired as soon as possible or situations at the limit such as sudden. blackouts and sandstorms that will partially cover the office.
The scoring system provides a classic score that will give access to a general evaluation the sum of which will allow us to unlock the next levels, consequently sometimes to go forward it will be necessary to go back, trying to do better in the levels that we have already completed.
It's all about the backside
KeyWey: graphically the developers have done a very good job, essential to attract even the youngest audience. By playing, we will also bea> able to accumulate coins to be used to buy objects and clothes in order to customize the two protagonists, actually a bit depressing at first, although seeing them waddle for the screen is unbearably pretty, and from the first glance. Kiwis, the real ones, have more than one peculiarity: they are all sitting, they have tiny wings and, hold on tight, they are the only birds that can swim much better than fly, to be honest like ostriches, emus and penguins are completely unable to take flight.In this game, their peculiar shape prevents them from interacting with the various elements in a normal way, and that is why they will have to rely on hops and pecks; to move stamps and stamps they will use their round plumed backside. Despite the normal doubts about the quality of a game that is only briefly tried, it is undeniable that from an artistic point of view, Stonewheat & Sons have worked to the limits of their capabilities.
KeyWe is actually a graceful, colorful, enveloping product, with details that we would not have expected on this budget range; certainly richer than the totally deliberate simplicity of Overcooked. The game will be released in August on Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch and PC, the platform on which we carried out this first road test.
KeyWe is a product to keep an eye on, especially if you love this genre as a family of cooperation, or you have a remote friend with whom to grind records in joy. The gameplay feels solid and the graphics are nice - things can hardly go terribly wrong.
