Paw Paw Destiny promises to be some kind of “cosmic horror-comedy” game with beat-em-up and platforming elements, but it feels more like a joke on the customer. This is the video game equivalent of getting a phone call from Mike Tyson trying to sell me a timeshare at Disney. The premise is too absurd to take seriously and too pretentious to be interesting.
What is Paw Paw Destiny about? How does one even play it? Normally this would be the part of the review where I try to build anticipation and set up questions to be answered, but the truth is that Paw Paw Destiny is one of the most directionless and incoherent messes I have ever experienced.
Paw Paw Destiny
Developer: Daiyu.studio
Publisher: Daiyu.studio
Platforms: Windows PC, Nintendo Switch (reviewed)
Release Date: December 12, 2024
Price: $14.99
There was a really good show in the late 2000s called Xavier: Renegade Angel. It was an intentionally ugly, surrealistic CGI animated cartoon about a new-age hippie who would do some heinous and dark shit because of his insane beliefs and the show explored the dangers of blindly following ideas. Paw Paw Destiny tries to be like that show but lacks the discipline or understanding of why it worked.
What is Paw Paw Destiny about? I have no idea. Inland Empire is easier to follow than this game. It begins with the player creating their avatar, choosing between a dog or a cat. Impressively, the developer put a lot of care and effort into the customization options for the character creator. Gamers can modify many surface-level characteristics to make their ideal dog/cat.
It doesn’t take long before the game sets you loose and are off to try to solve people’s social issues as your petsona. The problem is the gameplay mechanics are not properly explained and the scenarios are nonsensical conspiratorial missions that have no bearing on what the player does.
At first, you’ll think it is a matter of filling people’s hearts, but it gradually gets more convoluted. You’ll do something and then text will quickly flash on the screen, leaving you stupefied about what it said. Getting around is a hassle due to the bizarre controls. Your animal will sometimes get stuck in a frame of animation, and players will slide the single frame around the screen as the fps sputters and wheezes.
Basic gameplay elements like platforming are made more confusing because the game design is vague about what is a platform and what’s a background element. This is made all the more stupefying when the backgrounds are a vomitous mix of incongruent styles. Even the different pixel art styles clash due to the differences in resolution. The effect is headache-inducing.
The “cosmic horror” angle is depicted in some of the nightmarish imagery, but it never goes any deeper than the surface. The humor is best described as nihilistic, try-hard babbling. Many of the missions will ask players to do something and most of the time the requisites make no sense at all. Expect to solve people’s problems through trial and error.
Paw Paw Destiny’s adventure game elements are botched and the platforming is convoluted, but what about the combat? The game does not explain how it works at all. Your animal will be at the mercy of sloppy physics and cheap collision and dying is a currency penalty which is also not explained because it is possible to have negative money.
Real maniacs will be inclined to try out the extra modes, like the weird roguelike thing that’s over before it starts. It’s so pointless that you’ll wonder why it was included at all. A small-scale prequel game called Paw Paw Death is bundled with the Switch version, but it’s primarily a deck-builder and it’s every bit as heinous as Paw Paw Destiny. If you couldn’t connect with Destiny, then you won’t care about Death.
How anything works in Paw Paw Destiny is never made clear and half the time it feels like it’s unfinished and that you’ve hit a wall. It’s a shame that the result of the dev’s work is something hopelessly amateurish because there is an interesting premise to this. The idea of being an animal guardian angel and contending with metaphysical concepts and existential dread has potential.
The execution could not have been worse. Paw Paw Destiny is just too buggy and incoherent to play. Making sense of the symbols, goals, currency, and skills should not have been complicated. This should have been a fun avant-garde mindfuck, but it’s just annoying and too busted to play. It’s also not for kids. Despite the cute cats and dogs, Paw Paw Destiny is incredibly crass and inappropriate for minors.
Paw Paw Destiny was reviewed on a Nintendo Switch using a code provided by Daiyu.studio. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. Paw Paw Destiny is now available for PC (via Steam) and Nintendo Switch.
