Like the cycles from the moon, gamers have become accustomed to the release schedule that Maneater is about to follow. Released this past year to fairly solid reviews, gamers virtually expected a Switch port to reach some time. They might not have thought it would have a year, but with how popular Nintendo’s console is, releasing for this just makes sense if you have a game which will run on it. Of course, with an open world game occur water like Maneater, that wasn’t totally certain. Well, now that we’ve had some time with Maneater on Switch the reply is yes, it may handle the experience, but with some pretty significant tradeoffs.
Maneater won over a lot of fans through its style rather than its gameplay substance. Playing like a shark that’s focused on a revenge quest against most humans, only one in particular, gamers enjoyed the unique nature of this action-RPG, or “shARkPG” as developer Tripwire Interactive and publisher Deep Silver have named it. Starting out like a bull shark that has just seen his mother killed by Scaly Pete, star of a Discovery Channel style documentary series, players will feed on smaller creatures, battle larger ones, and devour humans all on the quest to become powerful enough to exact revenge.
The RPG elements are light though, offering just a few varieties to choose from in terms of powers and abilities. You do grow so much stronger through the game though, offering a real sense of scale and power as you return to previous areas simply to eat formerly difficult foes and mini-bosses as snacks. But that strength mostly just means rather than eating tiny turtles you can now take on seals and barracudas. As the scale does get larger the gameplay itself doesn’t really change all that much from the beginning of Maneater to its end in regards to a dozen hours later. For more info how the sport plays as a whole you can see our original review for that PC version.
The gameplay of Maneater stays the same in the transition to the Nintendo Switch. And it brings its usual big benefit in that the sport is now totally portable. However, as with other ports to the Switch you’re going to be making a technical tradeoff though. The sport simply doesn't run as well on Switch because it did on any of its previous platforms. As an Unreal Engine 4 title, it ports over quite nicely. In fact, it’s pretty surprising how well it does run given just how much can be going on at any time, using the 3D maneuvering space from the swamps and ocean of Louisiana, and all of the ocean creatures swimming around in it.
The framerate stays fairly solid, with dips out of all expected places and times, but nothing too detrimental to the gameplay. However, draw distance has been shrunk down quite a bit, giving the sport a lot more pop in of textures and world elements. The largest drawback though is the resolution, with Maneater appearing extremely janky on the larger TV, and still wrong in handheld mode. The visual drawbacks here are pretty extreme, causeing this to be a clearly inferior experience when compared to its other available platforms.
So when examining Maneater on Switch players will find themselves inside a pretty familiar place. There’s a good game here, though one which fits a distinct segment of early 2000’s action title that some players might not enjoy whether in 720p or full 4K. In the event that does appeal to you then you have a couple of questions to inquire about yourself if you’re debating picking up Maneater on Switch. Would you care about the visual presentation and overall stability of the game more than you love it being portable, and how expensive is price an issue for you personally.
Launching a complete year after hitting PS4, Xbox One, and PC the Switch version is releasing in the same $40 cost, making it a difficult buy for anyone with access to those platforms or their recently released (but still mostly unavailable) successors. If you’re not dying to experience Maneater on the run then buying it on there is a better experience all around. The sport will be cheaper, or even free should you already subscribe to Xbox Game Pass. It will likewise look and play better in every way.
But not everyone owns a PlayStation, Xbox, or gaming PC of course. If you’re a Switch only player then your math makes a much more sense. Maneater is really a fun game, and is is a fantastic fit for Nintendo’s handheld/console hybrid. It’s a shorter, more action focused game that, despite its open world setting, is mainly set up to be took part in short chunks. Missions could be started and carried out Half an hour or less, and the gameplay rarely enters long stretches where you can’t take a break. As a Switch title, Maneater works quite well and will please those people who are seeking something that brings them back towards the older times of action games.
But all that comes at the cost of Maneater’s visual fidelity and overall stability. It runs admirably well around the small , often underpowered console, but that doesn’t make it worth the top dollar admission if you don't don't have any other method to enjoy Tripwire’s latest action RPG. Unless you’re desperate for a new game to experience on the go, another platforms just provide a better experience all around and should be in which you look first.
The Verdict
Maneater is really a solid fit for the Nintendo Switch, but porting this ocean-faring adventure onto Nintendo’s handheld/console hybrid following a year of availability takes away a lot of the luster. The sport wasn’t perfect on PS4, Xbox One, and PC however it would be a surprisingly engaging action-RPG experience. Annually later it’s still fun, however with those earlier releases still available at a less expensive price and in better condition they simply make more sense for anyone who includes a choice. However, if Switch is you have then Maneater may be worth a look if you’ve been longing for a 2000’s style action game with some new upgrades.
