Come now. Take a seat. Make yourself comfy and get ready for a charming little puzzle game, Soko Penguin.
With my online handle AngryPenguinJ, when the team were presented with a penguin game, of course, I jumped at the chance to review this. And how absolutely delightful this little game was to play through.
Soko Penguin does not have a story. It’s a simple puzzle game of pushing blocks and making sure the penguin gets home. You can always make a story in your head of why the penguin has to get home, but it’s mostly just implied.
Soko Penguin is laid out in top-down pixel art affair with bright colours and simplistic design. This coupled with relaxing music, creates a quaint experience perfect for that downtime after a busy day or just when you need a little break.
The gameplay continues its simplistic nature by being a block-pushing game. You must manoeuvrer the electric block to the panel of the same symbol to open a bridge, allowing the penguin to go home.
Being a puzzle game, things start pretty simple with minimal mechanics. The further you progress, the more complex the puzzles become, as well as adding mechanics into the mix such as pushing logs onto the water to use as a platform, and using bombs to break rocks that stand in the way. With 100 levels to clear, there is plenty to work through, and every 10 levels you are rewarded with a new hat for the penguin to wear (which are just downright charming).
Being what some would call a budget title, the price of admission is only around £5 for consoles. Soko Penguin is a very pleasant time for people who enjoy a nice relaxing puzzle game and a fantastic introduction to puzzle games for younger audiences as the barrier for entry is incredibly low and able to be enjoyed by any age. If you are the kind of gamer who enjoys puzzles, then you may be able to fly through Soko Penguin in an afternoon. I cleared all 100 levels in about one hour.
Soko Penguin is a delightful experience with charming art and music.
Developers: Vergiu, East Asiasoft Limited, Vergiu Games
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X and Series S
Publishers: Vergiu, East Asiasoft Limited
Played On: Steam
About the Author
Pengy reviewing a Penguin game? How unlikely 🙂