Indie platformers can be hit or miss. There are some great ones like Yooka-Laylee, Celeste, and A Hat in Time. However, there are also some less enjoyable platformers made by indie developers. Developers eXiin and Fishing Cactus’ Ary and the Secret of Seasons is a fun, imaginative action-platformer, but I think it could have had a bit more time in development to iron some things out.

In Ary’s world, each region is in a perpetual season. Ary’s home is in perpetual winter, but the four regions (and four seasons) work together in harmony to prosper and flourish. Ary’s father is one of the four guardians, who safeguard the seasons and maintain order. After her brother Flynn goes missing, her father is unable to do his duty, as Flynn is presumed dead.

Ary uncovers evidence on the contrary and though Flynn was meant to be the next Guardian, she takes it upon herself to do his job in his place. At the same time, the seasons begin to be thrown into chaos. Ary must do what she can to restore balance to the seasons and stop a plot from unfolding and ending life as she knows it.

Now, before I go into further detail about Ary’s gameplay, I should mention something important. The developers have been hard at work on updating Ary and the Secret of Seasons to iron out bugs and rebalance some mechanics. I think this is a fantastic thing, but they are not done by any means. Ary and the Secret of Seasons still has some bugs that I think should be noted if you’re going to buy the game.

Additionally, if you’re going to purchase this game on Nintendo Switch, you should know that updates are a week or two behind the PC version. This isn’t new; most games update their PC version first before moving on to console versions. However, it is something to be aware of if you’re considering picking up the Switch version.

Ary and the Secret of Seasons is an action-platformer in every sense of the word. You traverse Ary’s world, using her sword (and slingshot) to fight enemies. You also have access to the power to manipulate the seasons, though some of those abilities come to you over time. One major sticking point I had with Ary and the Secret of Seasons is that you don’t get a tutorial on the specifics of how each seasonal mechanic works.

Granted, the Winter power is obvious because it is somewhat a part of your beginning tutorial. However, Summer, Autumn, and Spring don’t have the same sort of tutorials. They have levels built around them, but you have to spend a bit of time getting to understand them, not really knowing what you can do with them right away.

With that said, I really liked Ary and the Secret of Seasons’ gameplay, especially after the most recent patch. When I started reviewing this, (before the aforementioned patch) I ran into a lot of framerate issues and a lot of graphical glitches. There are still some graphical glitches, but they aren’t nearly as bad as what they were.

The combat is pretty fun too, it plays similarly to other action games in that you can attack, parry, and dodge. If you parry an attack at the right time, you can counterattack and do extra damage. The controls are smooth, the camera isn’t too hard to work with, and overall Ary and the Secret of Seasons is a delight to play.

There are a lot of things to do when you play through the game as well. There are tons of side quests, collectibles, cosmetics, and other things to spend your time pursuing. I would say you could probably get at least 30 hours in Ary and the Secret of Seasons, with more for a completionist run.

In terms of the story, there are some issues I have with how NPCs treat Ary and how the game’s story unfolds. Zoe’s review of the PC version goes into detail on this, and I don’t think I can say it any better than they have. So, if you’re interested in a more in-depth commentary on the issues with Ary’s narrative then feel free to go take a look at that.

However, my take on it, is that Ary is often underestimated for being a young girl when her brother is meant to be the next guardian. Comments like “You took out those Hyenas? You’re just a girl!” get thrown around and it gets fairly annoying after a while. I understand the idea of a coming-of-age story and this fits the bill. Yet, it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth that instead of gratitude, people react to Ary with surprise because of her gender. Can we just not?

I don’t necessarily think that the developers meant anything by that either. I simply think they were trying to drive home the idea of a girl taking on a “man’s world,” which really could have been done in other ways. It isn’t a deal-breaker for me, and it isn’t the most grievous of sins, but it does detract from the experience after a while.

All-in-all, I can honestly say that Ary and the Secret of Seasons is a solid Indie platformer. I think it would have benefitted from a bit more time in the proverbial oven, but they’re doing a great job of patching out the various bugs and issues. I applaud the development team for their work in trying to make all versions of the game better, and I can’t wait to come back to it in a few months and see if their rebalancing and bug fixes make it even better.

If you want a game you can play with your kids, Ary and the Secret of Seasons is a fun one. The puzzles aren’t too hard, but the game has enough depth to it for adults and kids to enjoy it. I would also heartily recommend the Switch version if you want something to play on the go or at home on your couch. As long as you are aware that the game has some issues that are being ironed out, I don’t think you can go wrong picking this one up.

A Nintendo Switch review copy of Ary and the Secret of Seasons was provided by Modus Games for this review.

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Ary and the Secret of Seasons

$39.99

8.5

Score

8.5/10

Pros

• Solid Gameplay
• Fun Puzzles
• Smooth Controls and Combat
• Lots of Things to Collect
• Great for Kids and Adults

Cons

• NPC's Don't Treat Ary Very Well
• Bugs and Graphical Glitches
• A Few Crashes