I’ll openly admit that I tend to be a sucker for games that simply seem determined to do their own thing, but there are obviously limits to how many shortcomings I’m willing to overlook before they become and issue. In the case of Once Upon a Puppet there’s quite a lot to appreciate, from its unique story and design, to its generally approachable nature. Where it falters and then falls apart a bit though is in the overall execution, resulting in an experience that’s easy to appreciate, but perhaps hard to love.

In the game you’ll actually be playing as a combination of two characters, Nieve the floating hand, and Drev the puppet. Early on these two will be bound together by a magical string, making them partners on a grand adventure to find the kingdom’s Prince and to attempt to return things in the kingdom to normal. To that end, you’ll need to explore, help people out, solve quite a variety of puzzles, engage in some occasional battle, and keep on the lookout for a variety of collectables that tend to be hidden all about. One benefit is that, on average, the bar for platforming skill and an ability to solve puzzles doesn’t tend to be all that high. 

That statement, unfortunately, does need to be qualified by a number of caveats. The first is that the controls are a bit on the imprecise side. Now, you could argue that this is consistent with the concept of you playing the part of a puppet on strings, but it doesn’t change the fact that they can be aggravating at times, especially when trying to get ahold of hidden collectables. A related problem is that the fixed camera angle in the game can create a number of problems at times, whether in the form of issues with depth perception when trying to navigate the environment, or some spots getting obscured by the foreground on occasion. The fact that the platforming doesn’t tend to be all that demanding does help soften that blow, but it does collectively leave an impression that the game’s mechanics are a bit sloppy overall.

What that leaves you with is a puzzle platformer with a pretty unique look and story whose appeal may vary depending on the audience. For less experienced gamers who can be frustrated by more challenging fare, the forgiving nature of the gameplay may help to compensate for it not being as polished as most of its peers. That said, the more of a veteran gamer you are, the issues may prove to be grating as you end up having difficulties with certain sections for reasons somewhat beyond your control. If you can be patient with it though, it’s a very pleasant overall ride.