Adorable Adventures review

Undoubtedly, Adorable Adventures makes good on its title. It’s cute, it’s cozy, and it offers a scenic trek though an open-world wilderness. The game’s precious protagonist is Boris. He’s a young boar with the kind of wide-eyed innocence and endearing animations that would be a B-tier Pixar movie rival if released in multiplexes. Yes, he’s the kind of protagonist that you’ll be root for within minutes after moving the controller to wake him up from slumber. And Adventures repeatedly renews that connection. Try not to fall in love with the way he careens around corners when sprinting, looking like a cat skidding out on wet tile.

Adventures’ premise is both simple and effective. Text tells of a devastating forest fire tears through Boris’ home, scattering his family and leaving him alone in a sprawling wilderness. Honestly, I’m glad developer didn’t attempt to provide a cinematic, which probably would have been too dark. Instead, after a bit of context, you’re sent out to reunite with your siblings. Sure, there’s a hint of melancholy at some of the burnt landscape, but the developers signal hope as life begins to bloom again in some unexpected places.

A Boar You Can’t Help But Adore And An Evocative Setting

Given director Steven ter Heide’s experience with Horizon: Zero Dawn, it’s not surprising that the world is one of the game’s biggest strengths, with environmental design that looks realistic but is also hidden with the alcoves and vistas that are abundant in game worlds. While Adventures takes place on smaller, more intimate scale compared to Horizon, it still captures some of the same kind of environmental storytelling. Here, dense forests open up to charred clearings, rivers cleave through rocky valleys, while the odd cairn dots a hillside, waiting for a spirited boar to knock them over. Many digital wildernesses can feel like backdrops but the landscape here is a co-star in Boris’ journey.

Movement plays a key role in how you navigate the world, and it mostly feels good. Boris can walk, run, and sprint, with each tempo giving a different sense of control. The drifting quality of sprinting can take a moment to get used to. But when you approach a formation of birds, you’ll understand why. These creatures provide Boris with point-to-point races, which can feel like a cliché in the sandbox playbook. But here, Adventures isn’t holding essential items hostage until you beat lap times. They also are infrequent enough to forgive or ignore.

A Nose for Truffles (and even Football)

Another area where the game shines is in the attention to detail. Boris is brought to life through a collection of charming animations. He flicks his ears, sniffs the air, and reacts in ways that make him impossible to not like. And largely, these little touches help to maintain the sense of immersion. Even when you’re not actively progressing the story, there’s a simple joy in just watching Boris scamper up a step, his bag legs giving a hearty kick for momentum.

Adorable Adventures’ play revolves around exploration and tracking, with Boris’ sense of smell acting as your primary tool. This mechanic is visualized through a scent-o-meter, which lets you filter different smells and focus on specific objectives. n theory, in a clever idea. Instead of following a mini-map marker, you’re literally sniffing out your next goal, like a real boar might.

But, in execution, the system is a bit of a mixed bag. Tracking scents involves following color-coded bubbles that drift through the environment. While it’s initially novel, it can become repetitive over time. There’s not much variation in how these sequences play out, and what starts as a engaging mechanic can gradually feel like playtime-padding busywork. It’s not a deal-breaker, but it does slow the pacing in sections that would otherwise feel more dynamic.

Of Sprinting, Sniffing, and Searching for Siblings

Progression is tied to rescuing Boris’ scattered siblings, which is where the game introduces light gating mechanics. Each sibling you save grants access to new areas, as the growing boar stampede can crash through previously inaccessible gates. It’s a familiar structure, keeping you from catching scents across the map, and its works reasonably well in the game, since seeing each each area feels like a reward.

That said, the game isn’t without its rough edges. The aforementioned tracking system can grow tedious, and while movement is mostly enjoyable, if can feel imprecise if you try to sprint up an incline that’s too steep. Yes, there are moments where the game’s ambitions can outpace its execution, leading to few frustrations that disrupt those aspiration of saving your mom and reuniting the family.

The Scent of Satisfaction Mixed with a Few Bad Odors

Overall, Adorable Adventures feels ideal for younger players or anyone who simply wants to unwind without the pressure of failure lingering overhead. Its forgiving design, soft pacing, and lack of punishing consequences make it easy to explore at your own speed. Here, you’ll soak the scenery and Boris’ spirited charms rather than stress about objectives or time. Even when the gameplay starts to lose its novelty, Adventures heart is in the right place. And there’s something commendable about a game like that right now.

Adorable Adventures was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.