Gobliiins Collection Review: Puzzling, Perplexing, Peculiar

I will overlook a title written in CAPS ONLY or having a ‘clever’ spelling if it has Amiga heritage. You may call that a bias, and it is, but more so when it’s a compilation of games I used to play as a kid, even if I never beat them. Friends, let me introduce you to the Gobliiins Collection for the Nintendo Switch. Did I mention that it’s a point and click?

Honestly, this recipe of Amiga and point and click is boner inducing, especially with the care and attention that Red Art Games has applied to its value. This collection is on par with the Digital Eclipse releases, such as The Making of Karateka and Worms Armageddon. There are multiple games, ‘talkie’ variations, fun facts, colourful bezels and much more. And that’s when I remember the games. The Gobliiins universe is so incredibly absurd that it makes LucasArts inventory combinations appear utterly normal.

Gobliiins Collection transition to the Switch works absolutely fine. This isn’t the conventional approach to controls, as it’s easy to scroll through the playable characters and actions. Then again, it’s also very easy to scroll through and select your characters unnecessarily. Let us set the scene to begin with, so you have an idea what the game is about.

Each of the five games, not episodes – they’re the full games – features numerous goblins on a bizarre quest in point and click environments, only without the typical way of interacting. It’s not always clear what you are supposed to do, nor how you are supposed to do it, and it includes some genuine trial and error. This effectively means that the game can be both highly experimental and very challenging, which is why I never originally finished them. We didn’t have walkthroughs on the internet back then.

The first game in the Gobliiins Collection was my first exposure to the series. I remember it having decent graphics and being amusing throughout. A lot of the adventure games back then, such as Sierra titles, didn’t have dialogue until the CDs and their talkies like DOTT. Gobliiins isn’t that type of game. It’s silly, fun, and totally abstract. The language thing is universal, as are the baffling puzzles. Later games lose the pixel art charm and more for a modern audience (at the time), though the slapstick approach remains and the games do get bigger in scope.

This curation is brilliant, and I admire the sheer value it offers, and though it brings a classic collection to the masses without having to download ‘backup’ ROMs or shifty emulators, it wasn’t without a few niggles like screen pauses and some dodgy glitches on screen at times. But ultimately, it’s a very out-there puzzle game, which, as a point and click veteran, have to say is very niche in an already niche market. This will appeal more to the retro fans, naturally, though more restrictive than usual just because of how unique it is, and not solely from a positive aspect.

I can’t fault the extras and presentation in Gobliiins Collection, with additional artwork and music on offer – if you’re the type who likes Blu-ray commentaries and will milk all the extras. I’ve never fully got things like the online manuals and box art, as nothing beats the physical counterparts, but grateful nonetheless for the choice. I genuinely am excited about what else Red Arts will bring out next. Hopefully, they have some networks for old Amiga and DOS games, as another title has hit my inbox this week, and if they do as good a job here, we’re in for a treat. I think now it’s a case of cherry picking the games of your youth and hope that gets a look.

For me, Gobliiins wasn’t a big deal back in the day due to how hard it was, but with the care gone into this collection, I have a much more positive outlook on it and suggest you give it some attention if you fancy something completely different for the genre.