When you hear the term soulslike a few things probably come to mind. A dark brooding setting, deliberate combat, and general bleakness regarding the story events of the game. If you love the gameplay of soulsborne games but are looking for something different then Another Crab’s Treasure might be just what you’re looking for. I was able to play the demo on PC as it is currently part of Steam Next Fest until October 16th and it wanted to share my initial thoughts below.
Another Crabs Treasure may initially look like a platformer that was designed for a younger audience as it definitely looks like a game that was designed around the idea of a Saturday morning cartoon, but I assure you it’s just as tough as any other soulslike experience. It’s hard to not draw comparisons to the beloved 2003 platformer SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom when looking at the aesthetic of Another Crab’s Treasure, but I once again assure you they are very different games. Despite both games featuring cute, colorful, art styles that star a sea creature fighting underwater to save their home.
In Another Crab’s Tresasure you play as Kril a hermit crab who’s only choice to survive is to fight back and because this is a soulslike, that will mean timing when to parry enemy attacks. Kril is not equipped with a sword and shield, or a magic staff, or even a giant hammer. No, the hermit crab hero utilizes trash that is found in the ocean as a protective shell, something that hermit crabs are known to do in real life if they cannot find a natural shell their size. What this means for gameplay is that players will need to hide in their shell of choice to avoid and mitigate oncoming damage from enemies. The type of shell you pick can range from shot glasses, soda cans, red solo cups, and other various kinds of trash. Each shell offers different stats and abilities that basically act as your magic spells. Instead of magic you have something called Umami, which is usually used as to describe the savory taste of foods, but given that the game is filled with all kinds of sea creatures that under normal circumstances would be edible, it’s a fitting name for a stat.
Speaking of stats, I loved the simplicity that Another Crab’s Treasure sets up with only 4 skills to choose from.
- Vitality for health
- Resistance for defense
- Attack for damage
- Umami for magic and magic damage.
Breaking Down the Demo
The demo I played was comprised of two different parts, a tutorial that explained many of the mechanics of the game such as grappling to locations that were too far or high up for Kril to reach and how basic combat would function. The second part however, was much farther into the game and provided less instruction but was a nice sneak peak of what players should expect once the game fully releases in 2024. I encountered different enemy types, much more challenging boss fights, and Another Crab’s Treasure’s version of bonfires which were called Moon Snail Shells that emitted a tall ray of light to help point you in the right direction.
When it comes to the overall gameplay I did love the variety that the different kinds of shells provided but the movement felt a bit floatier than I would have liked. Given that this game takes play underwater the floaty movement makes sense but I also know that a much smaller team is working on this so it’s something I am willing to look past. Since you are underwater you cannot take fall damage if you jump down from a tall ledge which I thought was a nice touch given that Kril can swim for a little bit to make a jump last longer. If you’re familiar with Yoshi, this is similar to Yoshi’s flutter jump. Falling isn’t impossible as there are classic video game pits of doom that will result in you losing health but not immediate death if you misjudge a jump over one of these dark pits. I didn’t feel like any of the platforming was very difficult but I did appreciate the alternative paths and exploration from the second part of the demo for more experienced players.
If you’re new to soulslikes there’s a great set of accessibility options that can make Another Crab’s Treasure more approachable for newcomers but the most noticeable option is the one labeled Give Kril A Gun. This option replaces Kril’s shell with a handgun that instantly kills any enemy in the demo as well as bosses with just one shot. It was very satisfying to go back to the final boss of the demo and destroy them in less than second after spending many attempts previously to defeat them.
Final Impressions
I had a great time with Another Crab’s Treasure and can’t wait to see how the rest of the game plays out. There’s a lot of charm in the game so far, like the idle animation that lets Kril play with a healing item only to lose balance of it and have it land several feet away. This resulted in the player actually having to retrieve the lost item and re-add to their inventory unless they wanted to go into battle with one less option to heal.
While I was only able to experience a small chunk of this underwater adventure it’s definitely on my must play list for 2024 because I think it has a lot of potential and brings some much needed color to the soulsborne genre.
Another Crab’s Treasure will release on Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam, and Xbox in 2024.
