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[BooJoh]

Title: Chicken Wiggle
Platform: 3DS Family (eShop exclusive)
Genre: 2D Platformer/Level Creator
Developer: Atooi (Jools Watsham formerly of Renegade Kid)
Release Date: August 17, 2017
Price: $14.99/€14.99
Download Size: 281 Blocks
Official Site: http://www.atooi.com/chickenwiggle.html

Chicken Wiggle is a 2D puzzle platformer with a built-in level editor that lets you share your creations online.

From the official site:

The stars of Chicken Wiggle are an improbable duo: a young chicken and his best buddy – a wiggly worm – nestled in his backpack! Together, they team up for adventure to jump, peck, and worm-grapple across a myriad of perplexing platforming levels – full of fun gadgets, tricky hazards, and sneaky foes – determined to rescue their friends from the wicked witch in her sky towers.

Chicken Wiggle takes inspiration from games like Super Mario Maker, Banjo-Kazooie, The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse, and New Zealand Story.

Development Diary from Jools Watsham

You can jump, peck, whip, and grapple your way through levels to make it to the goal. There are enemies, spikes, falling floors, wind, and more obstacles to overcome, and collectibles to find along the way. There are also five different powerups to collect, such as the Hero Mask which allows you to fly indefinitely.

The game comes with 40+ levels in Story Mode, plus more official levels and user levels through the sharing feature.

Chicken Wiggle comes with its own level editor, the very same editor that was used to make the story mode levels. You can place floors, enemies, traps, gadgets, swap your level's audiovisual theme, change the win condition, and more.

Every tool is unlocked from the start so you can jump right into creating if that's what you want.

What fun is creating levels if nobody plays them?

Once you've created your level, you can share it online where you can also find even more levels to play, both developer-created and user levels categorized by Official, Popular, Latest, or searchable by keyword or level ID.

Screens:

Video:
Trailer
Creating then playing a level
Level 1-4
Level 1-6
Level 2-5
Level 3-1
Level 5-5
Level 6-5
Hero Mask gameplay

Music:
Soundtrack on Bandcamp

Reviews:
GoNintendo Video Review - Positive
Nintendo Guru Video Review - 8.5/10
GamesReviews.com - 10/10
Cubed3 - 8/10
NinMobileNews - 8/10
oprainfall - 4.5/5
Pure Nintendo - 8.5/10
Shigeru News - 8.5/10
Warp Whistle Gaming - Positive
Nintendo Okie - 4/5
sweety high - Positive
Nintenderos - 8.5/10
TodoJuegos - 9/10
Nintendo.pe - 8/10

 

[Mejilan]

Always liked Renegade Kid's output. Originally skeptical, but those early reviews are nudging me over to BUY territory.

 

[Shiggy]

Just downloaded, the game looks great in 3D!

Is the level sharing down right now? Tells me to try again later. (Edit: Restarting my 3DS solved the issue)

 

[BooJoh]

Not sure. I'd check but it's not out in NA yet. I'm fairly certain the servers were up during the review period since people were tweeting about it.

 

[maxcriden]

Any impressions/reviews discuss how the physics engine/platforming is compared to Mutant Mudds? I liked the game but was absolutely awful at it.

 

[Shiggy]

Any impressions/reviews discuss how the physics engine/platforming is compared to Mutant Mudds? I liked the game but was absolutely awful at it.

4 levels in and it's super easy as it's still teaching you the basics. The physics/controls leave no room for ambiguity. Since you can stun enemies with the worm, it's also easy to kill them so far. I think you will like it more than Mutant Mudds.

 

[BooJoh]

Any impressions/reviews discuss how the physics engine/platforming is compared to Mutant Mudds? I liked the game but was absolutely awful at it.

I feel your pain, I was never able to finish either Mudds game as much as I enjoyed the gameplay. Some of the reviews for this mention that it's easier than Mudds for the main campaign. Obviously people will likely create difficult user levels to fill in that niche though.

 

[ryushe]

Huh.. First I'm hearing of this. Looks pretty good

 

[maxcriden]

4 levels in and it's super easy as it's still teaching you the basics. The physics/controls leave no room for ambiguity. Since you can stun enemies with the worm, it's also easy to kill them so far. I think you will like it more than Mutant Mudds.

I feel your pain, I was never able to finish either Mudds game as much as I enjoyed the gameplay. Some of the reviews for this mention that it's easier than Mudds for the main campaign. Obviously people will likely create difficult user levels to fill in that niche though.

Thank you both. Shiggy, are the physics themselves like for jumping the same as in Mudds? I could never quite get the right hang of it (and platformers are my favorite genre - I can usually hang pretty well in them - but Mudds I couldn't do well at at all).

 

[Shiggy]

Thank you both. Shiggy, are the physics themselves like for jumping the same as in Mudds? I could never quite get the right hang of it (and platformers are my favorite genre - I can usually hang pretty well in them - but Mudds I couldn't do well at at all).

The jumping is completely different. While in Mutant Mudds the jump height/distance depended on how long you pressed the jump button, it is fixed in Chicken Wiggle. You always jump up one block, regardless of how long you press the jump button. After world 1 I'd say that Chicken Wiggle doesn't require the platforming precision that Mutant Mudds did. (Edit: after world 2 I'd say it requires a different kind of precision)

The only issue I see is that I'm never sure how close enough I can go to an enemy to not get killed but to be able to attack that enemy myself. But since you have the worm and can stun enemies, that's really a safety net there.

Also, there's no time limit, so you have as much time as you want to finish a level.

 

[Totofogo]

I remember hearing that Mutant Mudds might be coming to Switch, any word on this following suit?

 

[Shiggy]

I remember hearing that Mutant Mudds might be coming to Switch, any word on this following suit?

Later this year.

 

[added_time]

Thanks for the heads up! I'll buy this for sure. I love Mutant Mudds and will try anything from this developer now.

 

[maxcriden]

The jumping is completely different. While in Mutant Mudds the jump height/distance depended on how long you pressed the jump button, it is fixed in Chicken Wiggle. You always jump up one block, regardless of how long you press the jump button. After world 1 I'd say that Chicken Wiggle doesn't require the platforming precision that Mutant Mudds did. (Edit: after world 2 I'd say it requires a different kind of precision)

The only issue I see is that I'm never sure how close enough I can go to an enemy to not get killed but to be able to attack that enemy myself. But since you have the worm and can stun enemies, that's really a safety net there.

Also, there's no time limit, so you have as much time as you want to finish a level.

That's excellent to know. This is exactly the information I was looking for. Thanks again.

BTW, what do you mean by "a different kind of precision?" Or are you referring there to the issue you mentioned below that?

 

[Shiggy]

BTW, what do you mean by "a different kind of precision?" Or are you referring there to the issue you mentioned below that?

I had some trouble in some sections already, but it didn't feel frustrating. So what I mean is that it's not a "no skill" platformer like Chibi-Robo Zip Lash or Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo.

The game's story mode seems to have 8 worlds with 6 levels each, and Atooi has already uploaded 12 additional levels (+user-created levels). So there's quite some content. The sharing function worked after I restarted my 3DS.

 

[maxcriden]

I had some trouble in some sections already, but it didn't feel frustrating. So what I mean is that it's not a "no skill" platformer like Chibi-Robo Zip Lash or Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo.

The game's story mode seems to have 8 worlds with 6 levels each, and Atooi has already uploaded 12 additional levels (+user-created levels). So there's quite some content.

Oh, I see what you mean. Thank you. I'm looking forward to checking out the levels. Glad to hear Atooi is already offering free additional levels.

 

[Raven77]

Looks great and the reviews are good too. Will be picking this up but praying for an eventual Switch release.

 

[Mega Man's Electric Sheep]

Just finished world 2 and there was some challenge already. The part with the spider enemies who jump when you jump and at the same time you have to be jumping on disappearing cloud platforms had me raging for a few minutes lol

 

[Shiggy]

Now every time I try to open the share portion in the main menu, the game force closes on me and I'm back in the 3DS menu? Does it work for others?
Edit: And fixed.

 

[BooJoh]

For my first custom level I remade Pac-man. Level ID: 328

I'm still working out what some of the tools do. Haven't figured out the camera object yet. Edit: okay, not positive but I think it might set the center for the sharing thumbnail.

I got through the first world and a couple levels from the second in Story Mode so far. I'm really enjoying this game a lot.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

I caved and bought this. Excited to give it a go.

Does the game not track if you get the letters and the gems on the levels?

 

[BooJoh]

I caved and bought this. Excited to give it a go.

Does the game not track if you get the letters and the gems on the levels?

It does, the corners of the tile turn gold. It's subtle.

 

[RawmeatCowboy]

Just wanted to drop in and say thanks for sharing my video review. I appreciate it!

 

[BooJoh]

Just finished world 2 and there was some challenge already. The part with the spider enemies who jump when you jump and at the same time you have to be jumping on disappearing cloud platforms had me raging for a few minutes lol

Alright, yeah, that part in 2-5 was a bit much for that early in the game. Hopefully that was an anomaly.

Just wanted to drop in and say thanks for sharing my video review. I appreciate it!

I'm just glad there are people out there reviewing these smaller indie titles early.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

It does, the corners of the tile turn gold. It's subtle.

Thanks. I don't know how I missed that. Aced the first world last night.

 

[Shiggy]

Finished all levels 100%, will check out some more online levels in the next few days.

 

[BooJoh]

I've finished the first 4 worlds so far, and the spiders and clouds section in 2-5 still stands out as the only time I really felt there was any semblance of "unfair" difficulty.

 

[Shiggy]

I've finished the first 4 worlds so far, and the spiders and clouds section in 2-5 still stands out as the only time I really felt there was any semblance of "unfair" difficulty.

There'll be more spiders later on in a level. There you better only jump once you are 60% off the platform already. Not a fun level either.

 

[BooJoh]

I finished story mode, I'll dive into more creation and online levels later.

I still think 2-5's combination of Slyders and Cloudaways was the hardest part. The Slyders and Touchables level was tough but you could at least stop and assess the situation on the Touchables, while Cloudaways force you to keep moving.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

I made a level while tired. Give it a go and let me know what you think. Level ID is 384.

 

[Shiggy]

I made a level while tired. Give it a go and let me know what you think. Level ID is 384.

Just searched for it and then noticed that I already played it and gave it a heart, suggesting that I liked what I played

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Just searched for it and then noticed that I already played it and gave it a heart, suggesting that I liked what I played

Thanks.

I'm only about halfway through the campaign but can't stop thinking about the level creation. The developer did a great job on this game.

Just beat level 5-2. That was real good. I want to make a level like that I think.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Just made another level. ID is 402.

It's called Spikey Cavern. It's a lot more difficult than my previous one. There are hidden gems and the letters are all hidden as well.

Let me know what you think if you get a chance to play it.

 

[Shiggy]

Just made another level. ID is 402.

It's called Spikey Cavern. It's a lot more difficult than my previous one. There are hidden gems and the letters are all hidden as well.

Let me know what you think if you get a chance to play it.

Didn't finish it, the part where you are flying through spikes wasn't much fun imo. The game's collision detection and character movement don't lend themselves to precision platforming like that; thankfully the Atooi levels left a lot of space to manoeuvre.

 

[BooJoh]

Just made another level. ID is 402.

It's called Spikey Cavern. It's a lot more difficult than my previous one. There are hidden gems and the letters are all hidden as well.

Let me know what you think if you get a chance to play it.

I died a ton on the spikes section, but I liked how you needed to go back and explore after getting the ghost powerup. I 100%'d and upvoted it, but in the future I'd be wary of making such tight deathtrap areas unless you're going for a kaizo level because a lot of people won't stick it through after a few deaths.

I found the same thing true in Mario Maker. My Expert and Super Expert levels got significantly less stars on average than my easier levels. There's still probably a niche audience for it though if that's just a type of level you enjoy making and/or playing.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Didn't finish it, the part where you are flying through spikes wasn't much fun imo. The game's collision detection and character movement don't lend themselves to precision platforming like that; thankfully the Atooi levels left a lot of space to manoeuvre.

I died a ton on the spikes section, but I liked how you needed to go back and explore after getting the ghost powerup. I 100%'d and upvoted it, but in the future I'd be wary of making such tight deathtrap areas unless you're going for a kaizo level because a lot of people won't stick it through after a few deaths.

I found the same thing true in Mario Maker. My Expert and Super Expert levels got significantly less stars on average than my easier levels. There's still probably a niche audience for it though if that's just a type of level you enjoy making and/or playing.

Thanks for the feedback! I did find out after dying a bunch myself that you can cheese parts of the spike section using the worm to pull you.

 

[BooJoh]

One of my levels made it to #1 in the Popular Levels list. I'm both flattered and kind of ashamed because it's literally just a tile-for-tile remake of Pac-man with some minor tweaks for playability.

I'm happy to have made it to the top, but I hope something more original and more deserving overtakes mine.

 

[Shiggy]

That's quite a shame :/

 

[Robin64]

That's quite a shame :/

It is, but it seemed to be priced a bit high in the first place. Hopefully the sale brings it closer to Mutant Mudds.

 

[Shiggy]

It is, but it seemed to be priced a bit high in the first place. Hopefully the sale brings it closer to Mutant Mudds.

I don't think it will have much of an effect. The 3DS eShop is practically dead. Games on there don't get attention anymore.

 

[Berordn]

It is, but it seemed to be priced a bit high in the first place. Hopefully the sale brings it closer to Mutant Mudds.

That and a 3DS-only eShop exclusive at this point in its life is probably just not going to reach a huge market.

It looks good and I hope they can bring it to other platforms like Mutant Mudds eventually did, but I feel like they've tapped out the 3DS.

 

[Robin64]

At least Jools does acknowledge that.

 

[CopperPuppy]

Ugh, this is disappointing. I'm going to pick up a copy and do my part.

 

[Billfisto]

I'll grab it if it's ported to Vita or Switch. Planning on ditching the 3DS after I'm done with Metroid.

 

[Ludist210]

That's quite a shame :/

I'm not surprised. The name sounds akin to shovelware, it shouldn't have cost $15, and most of the fanbase would have rather played this on Switch.

Not to mention that people who follow Atooi (or however you spell it) are waiting for Treasurenauts, which Jools has been basically been sitting on for two years.

 

[ZSaberLink]

Doesn't surprise me sadly. Putting a 3DS only eShop game as your first game as a new studio seems pretty risky. Plus the title & logo don't do it any favors.

 

[Robin64]

Blog post is up.

 

[playingwithfire]

That logo 😷

I might pick it up if/when it comes to Switch. I loved Mutant Mudds.

 

[Camjo-Z]

Perhaps the 3DS eShop audience has moved onto the Switch?

Let me answer all your questions now Jools, it's this 100%. If Chicken Wiggle were ported to Switch sales would be vastly higher than they are now.

 

[BooJoh]

Even this very topic went 2 weeks without a post before being bumped for this bad news.

It's a shame, I think the game is great and I don't regret my purchase for a moment. But I'm in the minority that still loves 3DS and will buy good games for it as long as they keep coming. I'll probably still double-dip if it comes to Switch, though.