Among the releases of Dragon Age Inquisition, Far Cry 4, Super Smash Bros for Wii U and other major titles, you could be forgiven for forgetting the coming launch of Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. The title hasn't had the same marketing push and doesn't carry the big-name franchise that many of those others have, but ahead of its release at the end of this week, positive reviews have come in.
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IGN, 8.2/10: "Treasure Tracker takes the core concept of Captain Toad and runs wild with it. It's a smart, adorable puzzle game that presents some awesome locales and really rewards you for taking the time to unpack them. Despite the control issues and menu problems, Captain Toad Treasure Tracker proves that you can still be great without being Super."
Polygon, 8.5/10: " Captain Toad expertly provides you with opportunities to feel like you're learning the game, and can excel with the tools it gives you. It made me feel smart when I did things right. And over the course of more than 70 levels, Captain Toad finds a lot of ground to cover, a lot of ways to make players feel smart. I wanted to find collectibles and secrets because they were there, because I felt a sense of accomplishment in finding them, not because I had to."
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"...For anybody else, Captain Toad's weird little experiment would be an afterthought. But Nintendo's exercise in digging has found something pretty special - an action puzzle game that succeeds on charm and smarts, rather than reflexes and spectacle."
Gamespot, 8/10: "Were Captain Toad's world not so appealing, it would be easy to grow tired of the repeat playthroughs if you need to go back and collect items like I did, but the cartoony, whimsical Mushroom Kingdom is easy to love, with layer upon layer of charm. From goombas in swim rings that flap their little feet underwater, to the tiny birds that land on Toad's head when he's idly wasting time, Treasure Tracker has a lighthearted and lovable presentation. It has the right mix of atmosphere and challenging puzzles to keep you engaged, and it's a great experiment within the larger Mario universe. It may have started out as a minigame, but with its original take on the Toad character and a large number of enjoyably tricky puzzles, it's great to see it in the spotlight it so truly deserves."
Game Informer, 8.25/10: "The oddest aspect of this title is that, with the all of the ways it uses the Gamepad, it almost feels more like a handheld game. You're constantly touching, tilting, and blowing on the controller, so it's often easier to look directly at the Gamepad's screen rather than your TV. In fact, some of the levels are actually designed to give you a better perspective from the Wii U controller rather than your TV.
"Toad doesn't jump, he doesn't attack, and he doesn't make use of any power ups (aside from a short-lived pickaxe) and yet Nintendo extracts more entertainment from this character's simple gameplay concepts than I thought possible. Mario isn't featured in this title, but Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker shares the same creative spark that so often fuels games bearing the Mario name."