Ruffy and the Riverside invites you into its whimsical world, hands you a unique tool, and says, “Go have fun.”
Every once in a while, a game comes along that reminds you why you fell in love with gaming in the first place. Ruffy and the Riverside is that kind of game. It doesn't try to be overly complex or reinvent genres, it just delivers joy, creativity, and exploration with the kind of charm that feels rare these days. If you're a fan of 3D platformers, especially the collect-a-thon subgenre that flourished during the N64 and GameCube era, this is something special. More than that, it's just fun, which honestly feels like a revolutionary concept in today's gaming landscape.
The story is intentionally lightweight, acting more like a springboard to launch the game's vibrant world and mechanics rather than something you'll be pondering deeply. An ancient, grumpy cube named Groll has corrupted the once-thriving Riverside Valley. This land's lifeforce is tied to a giant sign, think the Hollywood sign—spelling out “Riverside”. Now shattered, its pieces scattered across the valley's biomes, it's up to you, Ruffy, a fuzzy round creature with boundless energy, to restore balance by collecting those letters and pushing back the corruption.
It's straightforward, yes, but that's part of the appeal. It's a narrative that doesn't get in the way of the gameplay, and more importantly, it contextualizes your journey and gives meaning to all the exploring, jumping, swapping, and collecting you'll be doing. It works, and it works well.
At its heart, Ruffy and the Riverside is a 3D platformer collect-a-thon, with tight controls and expansive, layered levels full of secrets and objectives. The platforming feels excellent—responsive, fast, and varied. Running around, making daring jumps, discovering hidden paths, and collecting everything from butterflies to shiny pebbles to fuzzy little critters feels incredibly satisfying.
But what elevates Ruffy and the Riverside from being a throwback to something truly modern is its core mechanic: Swap.
Swap is… well, cool. Using Ruffy's scanner, you can scan objects in the world—whether that's material, texture, color, or even a special property and then paste that quality onto another object. Imagine scanning a climbable vine and then pasting it onto a waterfall, allowing you to scale up what was once a mere visual backdrop. Or seeing metal pillars in water, swapping a section of them with wood, then turning the water into lava so the fire eats through the wood and drops the platform, giving you a way forward.
These moments are genius. They make you feel smart and engaged in a way that most platformers don't even attempt. It's like an environmental puzzle system woven naturally into traversal and exploration. And when it works, it really works.
Unfortunately, Swap is also the source of the game's only real frustrations.
Despite the game's suggestion to “Swap Everything,” the mechanic has pretty clear limitations. You can't just scan anything and paste it anywhere, and worse, the game doesn't always tell you why something can't be swapped. Sometimes, it's because you're trying to change something the devs didn't intend to be changed. Other times, it's just because that object doesn't accept the attribute you're trying to paste. There's no visual indicator to guide you so trial and error is your only teacher.
It can feel a bit inconsistent. For example, you might scan a box with an upward arrow that causes platforms to rise when applied—but that same arrow can't open a door. Why? You might expect lava and water to make steam or some other cool reaction, but it doesn't happen. Well, the swap worked like a combine mechanic for the arrow/platform just a few minutes ago, so why doesn't it work for this? It's not a “combine” mechanic. It's not even a universal “swap” mechanic. It's more like you're trading attributes, color, texture, material, functionality etc. but what part you're actually transferring isn't always clear. Maybe for the eventual sequel, they can expand the swap mechanic to be also like a combine mechanic and that would open up a lot of possibilities.
Still, once you internalize the logic of the system, those frustrations fade a bit. You learn to think like the game wants you to think, and puzzles that once seemed obtuse suddenly make sense. You'll still bump into the edges of the mechanic now and then, but by that point, the joy of exploration outweighs the hiccups.
Another surprising aspect of Ruffy and the Riverside is its customization system. Using a surprisingly robust texture editor, you can design your own textures and apply them across the world. Want to paste your custom purple zebra-striped wood onto a set of planks? Go for it. Want everything to be neon blue and covered in smiley faces? The game lets you do that too.
It's not just cosmetic either as seeing your art across the world adds a weird sense of ownership and identity to your playthrough. It's rare to see a game let you manipulate the visual tone of the world this deeply without breaking its cohesion.
Visually, the game is striking. It uses a low-poly aesthetic that leans into the look rather than trying to hide it. Everything feels crisp and colorful, the world brimming with life and personality. The characters—especially Ruffy and the various weird creatures you'll meet—have a sort of Paper Mario-style flatness to them, with cutout animation and expressive faces, while the world is rendered in full 3D.
Each biome you visit, from lush forests to hot springs to eerie ruins, feels distinct and packed with things to do and find. The level design is dense and layered, clearly built with curiosity in mind. There's always something just out of reach, always a reason to come back once you've figured out a new trick.
The soundtrack is equally delightful. It's light, playful, and dynamic, always matching the energy of what you're doing without becoming grating. Well, except for Ruffy himself.
Let's talk about the wohoos.
Ruffy's constant exclamations, every jump, every action, every collected item, is punctuated by a joyful little noise. At first, it's charming. Eventually, it becomes… less so. It's not game-breaking, but if you're sensitive to repetitive sound effects, you'll definitely wish for an option to limit the frequency of the wohoos. Luckily there's already a volume slider just for character vocals.
Ruffy and the Riverside is a celebration of what makes platformers great. It invites you into its whimsical world, hands you a unique tool, and says, “Go have fun.” And that's exactly what you'll do. The swap mechanic, despite its rough edges, is one of the coolest puzzle-platforming ideas in recent memory. The worlds are vibrant and full of wonder. And the joy of collecting, discovering, and experimenting never really stops.
In a time where 3D collect-a-thons are few and far between and even fewer are any good, Ruffy and the Riverside stands tall. It's a must-play for fans of the genre and anyone who just wants to smile while they play. Highly recommended. Thanks for reading!
The game was reviewed on a PS5 via a promo copy provided by PR. Ruffy and the Riverside is available on PS5, Xbox Series, PC and Switch.
