Squareboy vs Bullies: Arena Edition Review

There’s nothing like an 8-bit retro side-scroller to make sure your game library is fully complete.

And Squareboy vs Bullies: Arena Edition certainly captures that aesthetic and feeling in spades.

Looking something like Super Meat Boy’s younger, less-assured brother, Squareboy has a bully problem and has no choice but to confront it head-on. Or fist and feet on, anyway.

Originally a mobile title from a few years back, players fight their way through various bigger and badder bullies as they move from scene to scene. From green-haired punks, to retro-age gangsters, Squareboy definitely has his work cut out for him.

The cool thing about Squareboy is that he has a basic attack which can be used to scrap and scrape through most fights, but by combining the stick with the button press you can pull off dragon uppercuts and spin attacks, as well as use jumps to get the height advantage.

Squareboy can also pick up objects to throw at enemies, like over-sized tires. In that, Squareboy manages to have a surprising amount of substance.

It quickly becomes stale, though. It’s a very basic title, with some fun to be had in pick-up and play blasts. But for a title on the budget end of the spectrum on the eShop, Squareboy vs Bullies is absolutely fine in terms of what it delivers, and how it operates.

With the strong influx of indies in recent weeks, it’s not going to set the world alight with its three button system and passage of play but if you’re looking for a cheap, mindless way to spend a few hours on Switch, you won’t go far wrong.

Pros
+ Easy pick up and play fun
+ Decent action and substance
+ Budget Price Point

Cons
– Becomes stale after a while
– Environments are a tad repetitive