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Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is one of those action adventure romps you might’ve missed when it originally launched due to things like it being an indie and debuting around the same time as games like Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, Elden Ring Nightreign, and the Switch 2 launch. Which would be a shame, since it’s a genuinely delightful game that, like Mina the Hollower, captures what made 2D, top-down types of sprite-based games so great. But now it’s on the Switch 2! Again, a good thing. Why? Because Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is a delightful Switch 2 game to play between some of the larger titles currently showing up on the system.
Pippit Pipistrello is a member of an incredibly successful (and problematic) family who runs Pipistrello Industries and provides New Jolt City with energy thanks to the Denquinellia Rose. He’s had the luxury of not getting to bogged down in that, focusing on being a yoyo champion while they ran a monopoly and set high tariffs. However, as the story begins, the family faces repercussions. His aunt Madame Pepper Pipistrello, head of the company, is attacked after he returns home by Don Mauretti, Carrara, Slime Tycoon, and Toxy as revenge for the company’s abuse of the city’s citizens. They take their Mega Batteries and use a device to attack Pepper and charge them with her soul. Pippit uses his yoyo to get in the way, which puts part of her soul inside of it. It’s then up to Pippit and the remainder of Pepper in his yoyo to head to each of the opponents’ main districts and destroy the battery to restore Pepper.
Like NES, SNES, Game Boy, and GBA style The Legend of Zelda games and Mina the Hollower, Pocket Trap’s Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo goes with an overhead approach. We go from screen to screen and room to room, defeating enemies and solving puzzles. However, instead of relying on additional items, a lot of the time we’re relying on Pippit discovering new tricks with the yoyo to progress and get through tricky situations. For example, a Ricochet bounces the yoyo for hitting switches. Walk the Dog involves riding it across water. String Grab lets you swing by grappling onto a hook. So the yoyo becomes your greatest weapon and traversal method, and it ties in really well to the situation.
What’s interesting is that in addition to really focusing on the yoyo concept, Pocket Trap also emphasizes the fact that Pippit is forced to turn to some unsavory methods to save his aunt and the people of New Jolt City are pretty desperate. For example, the upgrade system involves visiting Pepita the loan shark and going into debt to get upgrades like life restored when retrying a room or at safehouse trap doors or stronger charged attacks. When that happens, your max health will be temporarily reduced and some of the coins you get are automatically garnished to pay the debt. Likewise, the names of bosses suggest their own sins, such as Don Mauretti being a “Failed Mall Owner.” So both with the mechanics and story, we’re getting an idea of different kinds of corruption taking hold.
As novel as some elements are, especially with the yoyo working so well as a weapon and tool, there are some areas in which Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo doesn’t feel as on-point. New Jolt City ends up being pretty large, and it can be easy to get lost. Also, while the debt system is interesting, I sometimes felt it could be a little punishing. Especially since one time I made the mistake of heading up against one of the bosses before revisiting some older areas to ensure a debt would be repayed.
Now, as for why Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo feels different on the Switch 2, it mainly comes down to the frame rate. It’s at 120 fps here, which feels incredibly smooth and great for some of the more active moments. I will say the 1080p handheld and 4K docked resolutions didn’t feel that different for me, considering this is a sprite-based affair. But maybe others will notice and value it more? It runs well, and I do think the higher fps is appreciated.
Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo yet another great Switch 2 game, with the improved frame rate being the big draw. And, if you did already own it on Switch, there’s a free Upgrade Pack. The concept is sound. The design is bright and colorful. The yoyo works well as a great weapon in action, and the Badges are enjoyable to experiment with. I do think it gets a little frustrating, whether that’s due to an abrupt difficulty spike, awkward platforming segment, or sometimes it not being as clear about what we should do next. But it’s definitely the sort of game fans of Mina the Hollower and classic The Legend of Zelda should check out.
Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is now available on the Switch 2, as well as on the Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC.
