Image via Exquisite Laundry Pet
Exquisite Laundry Pet’s Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is a love letter to Game Boy Color RPGs. It’s the sort of game that doesn’t take itself too seriously, sticking strictly to a silly Halloween theme. Which can be quite fun, thanks to unusual characters, turn-based battles, and clever writing. However, the limitations also mean it might get a little frustrating.
Gumball is an actual gumball. They were in a machine, but after you select a flavor (color scheme), you drop into Trick-or-Treat Land. You want to get home, but the Chaos Sweets are ruining everyone’s day. If you want a mysterious Scarecrow to use magick to send you back, you need to reach every Hallowed Patches to restore it, dealing with unusual enemies and making the world safer along the way.
It’s probably obvious after seeing some screenshots and that trailer, but Exquisite Laundry Pet went for a Game Boy Color aesthetic for Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land, even adhering to those limitations so strictly that it is available on both a cartridge for Nintendo’s handheld and PCs via Steam. It’s the game’s greatest strength, I’d say. The restrictions forced the developer to get creative with its themes and gameplay, and when you keep that in mind with playing, it really does feel as though it’s calling back to that moment in time. The presentation and gameplay do remind me of what it was like to go through the Final Fantasy Legend or Magi Nation games. Still, even with needing to stay within certain boundaries, there is a whole potion ingredient and food and drink system and quite a few sidequests that unlock things like extra shops to add to its range.
That is a bit of a double-edged sword, however. While Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is charming and features a surprising number of side quests in addition to the main storyline, it’s also very open-ended. You need to go everywhere and talk to everyone to figure out where the seven Hallowed Patches. On the plus side, finding quest items isn’t difficult and even the people you talk to who don’t offer valuable information have fun things to say. However, I do strongly recommend having a notebook nearby so you can jot down who wants what, where they are, and maybe even draw a lil’ sketch of their sprite to ensure you won’t forget their fetch quest.
While things are very open-ended and require you to pay attention, the Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land combat system is quite simple and sticks to the theme. As you’d expect from a Halloween-themed affair, Gumball uses treats in addition to spells and skills when fighting. The “treat” action is a basic attack that may or may not land, the abilities are also candy-themed items you pick up as you progress through the world and are far more reliable methods of defeating foes at the cost of MP. You’ll even eventually recruit partners who can join in the fight and help you out! The downside to it is, as this is a very freeform game where you aren’t told where to go and when, it’s very easy to wind up in an area with too-strong opponents and perhaps get frustrated by a one-hit KO. Especially when you’ll have only a few points of HP at the very start.
Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land succeeds at keeping the Game Boy Color RPG vibe alive. It offers a lot to do while staying within certain limitations. However, those boundaries also mean it can sometimes be difficult to discern your next steps or running into fights you just can’t win at that point. Still, it’s a cute game and Exquisite Laundry Pet embraces that Halloween and GBC aesthetic.
Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is available on the PC and Game Boy Color.
Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land
Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land succeeds at keeping the Game Boy Color RPG vibe alive.