Nintendo Switch – A Short Hike #225

Have you ever wanted to fly… Wait a second I’ve heard that line before…

A Short Hike – Nintendo Switch (PC) – Released: 8/18/20 – $7.99

Short Review

Have you ever wanted to take a short hike around your neighborhood but as a bird? That is basically what “A Short Hike” is and it came at almost the perfect time. The release would have been spot on if it was earlier on this year for the Switch as everyone was in lock down and couldn’t go outside. It is a rather simple indie game by Adamgryu that has you climb a mountain to the top to get a call from your mom due to the lack of phone coverage at the foot of the mountain. Strange concept but ok, I don’t live near a mountain but I don’t think you would get better service on the top of the mountain but I could be wrong. Would love if anyone can tell me about this.

The entire point of the game is to befriend and do fetch quests for the locals. It could be finding shells or giving someone a small shovel for their sandcastle or watering flowers around the mountain. As you do more quests for the locals, you will earn more Golden Feather or find them around the mountain. These allow you to gain an extra jump that are required to get to the very top of the mountain. That is about it…. No, really that is all you will do for the entirety of the game and that is a good thing. Very few games title tell you exactly what to expect and “A Short Hike” does exactly that. You will interact with weird characters all doing their own things but ultimately it is up to you to follow your own path up the mountain.

Final Thoughts

While the game is a fun time until the end… It is a very 100% type game to get your money’s worth. I was able to beat the game in less than two hours and the only reason I wanted to check out the game is because the music… is… excellent! I ordered the vinyl record and slipmat that the team was selling on their website and I can’t wait for it to come in. Definitely check out the music since it is really chill, Mark Sparling did an amazing job at the soundtrack.

My Gameplay Footage:

Trailer:

End Credits

Week 2 of the return and hopefully this time it doesn’t end anytime soon. This was a very short game but it was a ton of fun with plenty of other things to do in the future. I will definitely be taking the time out to 100% this game in the future but it seems like I will need to look up a few things since honestly there is a lot of unpack here that I haven’t even touched upon.