The Switch gets so many games that something smaller, like FaceIT and Noodlecake’s Summer Catchers, might get lost in the shuffle. Which is a shame, because someone could look at the screenshots and think, “This is a port of a mobile endless runner. I can skip it.” The thing is, it’s genuinely neat. There’s personality here and a deck-building element that makes it more compelling than someone might expect.
The Summer Catchers motives are relatively simple. Players follow a young woman named Chu who has never experienced summer. She lives outside The Night Forest and wants to finally see a season other than winter. A local wolf offers her a free wooden car to make her way to the ocean. This kicks off a series of drives where players follow Chu as she drives through otherworldly areas.
The thing about Summer Catchers is that it doesn’t exactly function like most endless runners. Yes, you ideally want to drive for as long as possible, so you can earn currency and complete the handful of missions that will let you find the “way” to the next location. But the objectives can involve actual actions. The power-ups you find area tools that appear on cards, with a random three appearing in-hand to use as needed. When you go on runs, you’ll see supernatural creatures and perhaps have a chance to interact with them after Chu wipes out. There are even puzzles.
It’s distinctive in a way I didn’t expect. This is because there’s a strategy to it. You have an idea of what kinds of obstacles you’ll see. In the shop, the tool cards show what each one can handle. And your “deck” has no limit. But you want to maintain a certain balance, otherwise when you reshuffle, you might not get an essential card. Things also get more complex when you take certain missions, because those add additional tools (cards) to your backpack (deck). As an early example that isn’t a spoiler, Chu might have to plant trees. So you’ll have new cards that are saplings that can appear and a different kind of visual element to look for when driving. And, since the background can sometimes distract you with hints of looming giants or ethereal deer, you really have to pay attention.
But since this is a port, people might wonder how the Summer Catchers Switch version even works. After all, endless runner sorts of games often rely on quick reflexes. And someone might be playing it docked, rather than in handheld mode. Aside from not being able to pick your needed item as quickly, it works really well. I’d say in some ways, it can feel a bit smoother. Yes, you have to use controls to scroll and select the item you want, then press an action button to trigger it. But shuffling seems fairly easy.
Plus, the difficulty accommodations allow you to slow the pace. I found that was probably the most helpful part of the game. At its normal pace, I felt things were very manageable. But when you have an additional character chasing after you, dropping things down to easy so you have a little more time to react to its cues behind you and the obstacles ahead of you can make a huge difference.
As a whole, Summer Catchers is completely delightful. It is this bright, detailed game that brims with optimism. But even though it falls into the endless runner kind of category, where you’re constantly moving and hoping to go as far as possible, the charm, supernatural elements, and personality make it more engrossing than you’d might expect. Especially considering how well Summer Catchers works on the Switch.
Summer Catchers is available on the Nintendo Switch, PC, and mobile devices.
