‘Draw A Stickman: Epic’ Reviewed: Filled With Charm And Challenges

Draw a Stickman: Epic is a series of action puzzle video games developed by Hitcents that initially received their start on mobile devices. There are a total of three installments currently and some of them have been ported to other consoles. Recently, the original Draw a Stickman: Epic was released on the Nintendo Switch.

The story isn’t anything too novel. The evil stickman, Zarp, has kidnapped your buddy and players guide the self-made protagonist through obstacles placed in their way to hinder the rescue. At your disposal are a variety of magical pencils that can interact with the surroundings and create useful items to aid you on the journey. Although, Zarp has ulterior motives for luring our hero to his kingdom.

The graphics of Draw a Stickman: Epic will never be confused for your typical next-gen hyper realistic title, but the hand drawn aesthetic fits right in with the unusual fantasy world creating a level of distinctive allure. There is even a personal touch as players create their own stick figure for the hero and their buddy. As you progress through the game, unlock more colors to use for more degrees of customization.

The gameplay is quite immersive sketching with the different pencils and watching how your creations interact with the environments. You can’t draw anything you want so there is a degree of limitations. There are setting modifiers such as fire and clouds that provide rain or lighting and helpful items including keys and axes.

One of the most enjoyable aspects is the puzzle-solving. The developers are pretty creative with the different stages and the difficulty increases the further you progress. Don’t underestimate the simple and cartoonish visuals because it can be pretty challenging to figure out the right combinations of magical pencils to use. Despite the focus on puzzles, there are action elements with enemies to defeat but it never becomes too violent. Draw a Stickman: Epic is wholesome and an enjoyable all ages title.

There are areas where the game could see improvement. When porting to the Switch, the controls could be better. When illustrating, the analog stick doesn’t provide the fineness in movement for greater detail for those who want to demonstrate their artistic talent. It’s amusing initially to draw everything but loses its novelty quickly. Soon after, you’ll find yourself doing the bare minimum for efficiency purposes. In addition, movement can be finicky and choppy sometimes, which can be frustrating when being chased by an enemy.

Also, the preselected use of pencils each stage is a little annoying. It would have been better to have access to all the pencils accumulated to that point to have more fun and freedom. Maybe once the level is completed, a free play mode with all options available. There isn’t much replay value once finishing the game and at least this way can you mess around a little bit more adding longevity.

Draw a Stickman: Epic is a quirky and immersive puzzle adventure that is family friendly but challenging.