At first glance, Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories doesn’t seem like much beyond another indie game trying to replicate the look of the original Game Boy. However, once I got my hands on it and started playing, I was instantly teleported back to my childhood. A time when games like these would entertain me during long car rides. Between the story, the great feeling of wonder that it brings, and the quirky characters that you meet along the way, Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories has something for everyone who was a child of the 1990s, 2000s, and even the youth of today!

You start your journey as Honeydew (you can choose your name), an employee at a factory that produces Melon Soda who is asked to sneak out of work one day by their best friend Cantaloupe (default name). You head out to meet Cantaloupe and a few other friends in Hog Town, only to find yourself embroiled in a sticky situation that could determine the fate of more than just the whereabouts of your friend. From a gang of misfits, an excessive couple, a wacky mayoral race, and a devious little ghost, there is a lot to discover within the story and world of Melon Journey.

The first thing that we need to discuss is the graphics. The visuals provide a clean look at what Game Boy games would look like if they came out today. I was worried at first if the Game Boy color palette would potentially bore me since it had been many years since I had played a game in that style.

However, I found myself even more enthralled with the story due to this artistic choice. The developers managed to create the characters and environment in a way that made this feel like a truly authentic Game Boy game. The only thing that made me realize that this wasn’t the case was when I was done playing and realized that I had a Nintendo Switch in my hand.

While I gave a little inkling of what the story is about, I am not going to spoil the main story. However, there are various events that you will encounter along the way. There are a number of side quests that you can get involved with that will introduce you to some of the eclectic characters that populate the world of Melon Journey.

You are not given any straightforward clues with a lot of the side missions, just the dialogue that a character gives you and a variety of changes that will happen on parts of the map that an eagle-eyed player will be able to see. Speaking of dialogue, this game has quite a bit of unexpected humor that can give nearly everyone a laugh here and there.

I am happy to report that there were very few bugs on the Nintendo Switch version of the game. There were a few times when the game would crash, which was a bit annoying. Luckily this wasn’t a detriment to my overall experience, but it did cause me to backtrack since the game doesn’t have any sort of auto-save feature. Being a generally paranoid person when it comes to saving, I only had to go back about three minutes each time. There was no pattern that I saw as to why these crashes were occurring, but I imagine that it is something that could easily be patched up in the future or already has been.

Overall, I believe that Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories is an adventure that all players should take on! Melon Journey has everything from great characters to an awesome soundtrack and a retro aesthetic that all blend together in order to bring a truly amazing experience. While this game is available on Steam, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, I would highly recommend playing it on a Nintendo Switch or Steam Deck in order to give you the true handheld experience that this game deserves. This way you can truly be transported back to a time when dial-up internet was just spreading around and Star Trek was almost always on tv screens.

If you want to read about other recently released Nintendo Switch games, check out Alexx Aplin’s review of Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon right here. What other games have been made recently that capture the Game Boy aesthetic? Let us know in the comments below.

A Nintendo Switch review copy of Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories was provided by XSEED Games for this review.

Phenixx Gaming is everywhere you are. Follow us on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Also, if you’d like to join the Phenixx Gaming team, check out our recruitment article for details on working with us.

Phenixx Gaming is proud to be a Humble Partner! Purchases made through our affiliate links support our writers and charity!

Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories

14.99

9.5

Score

9.5/10

Pros

• Great Story
• Amazing Soundtrack
• Retro Aesthetic
• Short, but Sweet
• Good Price

Cons

• A few crashes