Dust: An Elysian Tail was released on the Xbox 360 in 2012 and has found its way to the Nintendo Switch, the perfect home for such a game. Dust is an indie developed game that was created by one man (besides the music and VO). It won the 2009 Microsoft Dream.Build.Play competition which allowed the game to be completed and released to the Xbox Live Arcade. Dust is a 2D side-scroller with elements from Metroidvanias, Brawlers, and RPGs combined into one game. In 2012, Dust: An Elysian Tail was highly received by critics and fans alike, but does it hold up as well as it is remembered? Considering how many indie games are available today that offer better combat, better story, and more varied ways to play Dust: An Elysian Tail may not be a great option to play on the Nintendo Switch.
In Dust: An Elysian Tail the story begins with another amnesia inflicted protagonist whose name is Dust, Dust is approached by a mythical sword and annoying sidekick named Fidget who are there to assist on a journey to save the land. As the story progresses it doesn’t ever find its way out of the generic space except for the occasional dip into sub-par writing. Fidgit is front and center in these sub-par scenes as her VO is constantly annoying, and the writing for her character is cringy at best. Further into the game more about the history of the protagonist is revealed, and any interesting plot points are told, not shown to the player. Virtual all of the story is presented with the gameplay paused, and hand-drawn characters reading a script. Animated cutscenes are few and far between, but when they do arrive they look nice and serve as a reminder that the story could have been far greater if more of it was presented in a more interesting way. Unfortunately, the game’s woes do not end with the story alone, but other aspects of the game have not aged as well as some may like to think, such as the combat.
As a 2D side-scroller, there is only so much a game can do to vary up combat, but this game seems to do almost nothing to keep the player intrigued in the combat throughout the game. When compared to other recent indie releases for the Switch such as Dead Cells, it is clearly lacking finesse but isn’t a fundamentally flawed combat system. Dust: An Elysian Tail’s combat is fluid, fast, and always looks amazing, however it remains virtually the same through the campaign with no different weapon types, no new combos, or anything to keep the player interested within the first few hours. Where the combat does little to keep players interested, the games art style picks up the slack.
Even after 6 years, and countless other beautiful looking indie games such as Cuphead, Owlboy, and Celeste, Dust still looks fantastic and belongs in any conversation for one of the best looking Indie games. Each handcrafted environment draws the player into its world, giving more reason to progress through the game than the story ever does. While the environments cover generic ground such as the snowy level and the fire level, it manages to remain a unique title for the Nintendo Switch.
Dust: An Elysian Tail has found itself a perfect home in the Nintendo Switch’s library. While a player may not want to pour countless hours into it at one time the game fits perfectly in short segments such as a bus or plane ride. There were times where it appears to have some technical issues and framerate drops, but nothing seriously crippling to the experience. But is this the best game to have on your Nintendo Switch? Unfortunately, I don’t believe so. This game is held with regard in many’s memories, but with the stiff competition brought by other indie games out today, there are better options to play on the Switch.
