Video Game Review - Wobbledogs
Ellie reviews Wobbledogs on Xbox Series S…
Owning a dog is cool but have you ever wanted a mutant dog? Well with Wobbledogs your chance is here. I knew from the first moment I saw the trailer this would be a game I’d enjoy.
Wobbledogs is a new pet simulation game from solo developer/designer Tom Astle, alongside the developers over at Animal Uprising, and published by Secret Mode. Wobbledogs is a quick moving sandbox game that’s been designed for all ages to enjoy. Its a simple game that allows you to simply pick up anytime to then spend hours caring for your virtual friends.
As expected, the gameplay to the title is also pretty easy going with the whole premise being to care for these “Wobbledogs”. As you spend time with the dogs, they start to go through their various life stages. When the animal is ready to grow, much like a caterpillar, they develop a cocoon until its time for them to hatch into the next stage of their lives - bigger and better. To keep things interesting sometimes the dogs will emerge from their cocoons with a new trait. These traits are random but can be influenced by what food they eat before they pupate.While each dog is alive you’re then able to inspect the bacteria living inside of them which can then help towards creating new breeds. It’s this Flora that ultimately determines what your dog passes on to future generations, and it’s well worth unlocking them all to see all the crazy mutations such as horns and wings. Much like with our real-world friends, the Wobbledogs do sadly die. However, if you do feel particularly attached, you can send your favourites to storage, and there’s also an option to turn remove death from the gameplay too.
Away from the cute dogs, and the rest of the Wobbledogs experience ispretty unique. Our cute little doggos wobble as they walk and it’s amusing to see them eat foods that are often bigger than them. The food they eat comes from a variety of dispensers that you can place within the dogs living area. These range from food stuff such as chicken nuggets, burritos and french fries, and are all ejected from the dispenser as the dogs hit the comically large buttons attached. In a slight morbid way the dogs can also feast on their dead friends. Wether it be their legs and bodies, baby teeth, empty cocoons, or even poop, there’s other food sources for our wobbly friends too! Our not so furry friends also like to dig and while digging they can find seeds and toys which help enhance their living area. Adult dogs can also lay eggs which you can place a breeding simulation, however each dog can only lay one egg on their life cycle.
As well as looking after your dogs and keeping their area clean, you also have to keep them amused. As such you’ll be able to buy various enrichment toys that’ll keep your dogs amused when their not eating. You can also decorate their area with various wallpapers, flooring, and flowers - which come from seeds that our dogs like to dig up. Those who hunt achievements are also catered for as unlocking certain ones also come with their own decorative items as well. At some point in your dogs home they’ll also construct a den made of dirt that they then use to bury toys, and generally hide away from prying eyes. Capsules can also periodically spawn in the world which once opened will unlock a new wallpaper or floor design.
Considering that Wobbledogs doesn’t have the monetary backing from a big studio, it handles incredibly well - and looks incredible. The cartoon presentation really fits the atmosphere that Tom Astle has created for his creations, and while they’re ultimately dogs that wobble, their movements are incredibly alien. It also serves to give the game an all-ages feel.
As for the future, personally I would like to see some additional content added to the game. While there is a lot to see and do, the addition of a few more Flora’s would get you coming back once it’s said and done. Another thing I would like to see is more handholding when it comes to breeding. A lot of this does boil down to trial and error, and when your constantly seeing the same dogs it can feel a little monotonous. However, it’s only a slight downside and even as is it doesn’t detract from the game.
Overall, Wobbledogs is a fun game that full of bright and colourful characters that feel straight out of a bizzare Nickelodeon cartoon. It’s a zany world that’s full of wonder and imagination as you go about caring for these animals, and essentially playing the role of a “Wobbledog John Hammond”. When you also factor in that the games be designed by one person, it stands as a great achievement, and a big springboard for Tom Astle’s future work!
Rating: 9/10
A code was kindly provided for the purposes of this review
Wobbledogs is available now and can be purchased via the Microsoft store.
Ellie Woodcock - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow us on Twitter/Facebook @GeekCultureRev, and TikTok/YouTube @Geekculturereviews.
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