JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword (Switch)
Game length is certainly an important factor to consider when a video game is viewed purely as a product, but when it comes to truly assessing the quality of a title, it is instead a matter of determining how well a game uses the time you spend with it. An incredibly short game can be far superior to a much longer one if it uses its time to provide a consistently strong and entertaining experience, but a shorter game can also run the risk of not really having enough time to establish itself. It does seem like JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword finds itself in the latter position, the game taking around 2 to 3 hours if we’re being generous and not having much time to really explore what it is trying to do.
JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword consequently doesn’t spend too much time on its plot despite having “Tale” in its name. JackQuest begins with Jack attempting to profess his love to long time friend Nara, but before he can, the enormous hand of the orc Korg bursts from the ground and captures her, dragging her down into a winding subterranean base that Jack dives down into to save her. Very few story details crop up beyond this set-up other than Jack’s initial meeting with Kuro, a talking sword that is much larger than he is. Despite the size discrepancy, Jack uses this new weapon as his main tool in defeating the monsters lurking around Korg’s cave lair, but Kuro is certainly an odd companion. Chiming in with little bits of dialogue during your adventure, Kuro will shout things like “DIE! DIE! DIE!” and asking the same unanswered question about Nara, making his intentions seem potentially suspicious when they’re probably just there to remind your that the fairly standard looking giant blade is actually a cursed soul and not just a tool.
Kuro’s use in battle isn’t too complex, JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword structured as a Metroidvania platformer focused on the exploration of one large maze-like cave first and foremost, with a lot of the fighting done to clear enemies from your path. When a slime, giant bee, skeleton, or other typical animal or fantasy enemy is lurking around and potentially trying to touch you or hit you with a long-ranged attack, some wild swinging will take care of them eventually. If they are placed on a thin platform, near environmental hazards like deadly spikes, or in a pack with other baddies though, you might want to spend some of your crystal energy to do a powerful spin attack to clear them away. You do eventually get a bow you can swap to for attacks, but if an enemy is on a different elevation than you, it can be difficult to time the jumping arrow shot properly since it’s so quick, and since it is weaker than your slash, it rarely provides much help in clearing out the rabble.
Against bosses and certain hazards though, the bow gets it chance to shine. Its crystal powered special move is a forward dash that is used to get through a few spots in the game, but the boss fights are actually quite strong, and having the option to fire on them from afar means some later bosses can get quite crazy with their attack patterns. Things start simple with a giant blob that mostly just tries to crowd you out and sprinkle goo down on you, but even then the need to find safe spots to stand and attack is prioritized, something that later bosses like the undersea serpent demand with their rapid projectile attacks and counters to someone just trying to rush in and slash away. There are only five bosses total, their fights being probably the highlight of the experience since they are decently difficult but not crazily so. They are but a tiny fraction of the experience though, but they do show the potential the game had if it had continued to grow and evolve rather than wrapping up quickly after your fifth boss battle.
JackQuest actually has an approach to difficulty akin to Everybody Loves Skeletons where enemies aren’t too tough individually but you have a limited life meter and few chances to heal. The weak enemies and traps will leave lingering damage on your character with only a few healing items getting dropped from breakable boxes or foes, most of the life having to be bought from a vendor who also sells refills for the less limited special attacks and torches. The checkpoints you’ll respawn at after a death are spread quite far apart and retain how much health you had when you activated them last, but if you choose to use a torch, you’ll create your own checkpoint, making it a good tool to use when you’re about to face a boss or a room filled with traps. Buying items requires coins that can be earned through killing foes and busting crates, but the prices of items limit how much health you’ll be able to afford. These choices at least ensure JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword isn’t a breeze to push through and makes the bosses as tense as they are to fight, each hit felt since they are somewhat difficult to recover from.
The world of JackQuest is unfortunately somewhat bland. The cave background is ubiquitous and very rarely contains any identifying features to make quick navigation easy in this game that does ask for a degree of backtracking. Learning more distinct layouts of platforms is a must before you get the map, and even then the areas aren’t interconnected to a degree where you can avoid traipsing about areas that are somewhat plain in the challenge they present. There are underwater segments that feel remarkably different, but beyond that there is only really the gradual rollout of stronger enemies and some meaner spikes placement to separate areas. If you are hoping for rewards for exploration as well, JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword doesn’t have too much to offer. Mainly, going off the beaten path or searching for secret areas happens somewhat rarely, the rewards being either the slightly helpful expansions to the energy for your super moves or the much more coveted health expansions, but many of these depend on finding false walls rather than using the few new abilities you do find to access special areas. The game does sometimes provide a torch or money stash as a reward for smaller diversions, but the shreds of exploration are not really something that’s going to draw in fans of Metroidvania titles. Like most things in JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword, it’s just another aspect for a feature list rather than something that will entice players with strong execution or a unique take on the formula.
THE VERDICT: JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword just doesn’t have the time to pick up steam in its short runtime. It’s got the basics down for its action platformer design, and some choices like its boss battles and approach to limiting health are promising, but it doesn’t have the time to explore them or share them well before the barely present plot wraps up. JackQuest ends up landing itself in a middle zone of mediocrity where it can only provide brief brushes with elements that could have made a heartier game more entertaining.
And so, I give JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword for Nintendo Switch…
An OKAY rating. JackQuest reminds me of the kind of game that would be made at a Game Jam. Something solid and decent enough, but games made at those special events are often polished and given more content if they ever receive a full retail release. I was even reticent to use some of the terminology the game ascribes to itself since it has spends so little time presenting any of it, but it just barely scrapes by with its self-described Metroidvania label. On the other hand, it doesn’t have the hours of content it promises unless we get generous with the meager achievement system that seems to have some flaws in triggering properly, and its promise of weapons like swords in the plural form feels outright false. There is still enough inoffensive platforming to be found, and the bosses are an interesting enough feature, but JackQuest: The Tale of the Sword really does just travel a well worn road that is reliable but nothing exciting.
As a product I’d have to recommend against JackQuest, but when it comes to its quality as a video game it doesn’t really have any glaring problems. The length is its greatest fault since it restricts the game from ever going beyond its fairly generic template, and it feels like yet another indie game that could be the start of a more interesting experience but ends before it ever gained the traction needed to impress or leave a lasting impression.