Looking for some wild and crazy goofiness this summer? Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip by snekflat is a raucous and wild romp through a small island city. There’s only a few rules in Spranklewater, and they are: one: go as fast as possible, and two: there are no rules!
The story of Terry and his taxi is pretty simple: Terry needs a car to go to the moon. Why does Terry need to go to the moon? Well, wouldn’t you want to go to the moon in a turbo-charged car? The writing in Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip is truly wonderful. It has some of the driest, bluntest humor I’ve ever seen in a game. Every part of Terry and his turbo trip is absurd, like if Pablo Picasso had too much giggle juice. The lines are so memorable because they’re stated so matter-of-factly. What we may see as absurd, in Terry’s world, that’s just how it is.
First and foremost: to get to the moon, we need junk. Lots of it. Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip is a collect-athon, where you’re juggling various currencies and resources to help you complete various tasks. Collect bugs for bug patties (they go great with beach fries), collect money to buy more things you can swing, and most of all: buy junk to upgrade your taxi. I’m not even sure Terry is allowed to drive (he’s not). Yet, he was still hired as a taxi driver to cart people around town. Don’t worry, though, it’s a one-seat taxi, so no one else can fit! Instead getting more seats, Terry needs more boosts to get around town and up the sky scraper that goes past the sky. Mom and Dad are off on vacation, but Uncle Grony helps out when needed.
The gameplay in Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip is dumb, but that’s the point. Early on you get a pipe to swing around and whack at everything possible, including people (don’t worry, they just flop on the ground like a fish). Driving around is of course much faster than walking. Your car is the smallest one on the road, and almost circular, meaning you can squeeze around traffic with eaze. Your car wibbles and wobbles as you drive, and there’s no police around to chase after you (did I mention there are no rules?) Apart from the light story, Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip leaves the pacing up to you. Wanna go around and explore? Go ahead. Play soccer with an orange? Sure thing. The one set back about going around and being silly is that there aren’t tasks or systems that encourage you to be as such. Most objectives are fetch quests meant to encourage you to explore, but there aren’t hidden tasks that unlock if you try to be sneaky (unless I haven’t been sneaky enough).
I honestly have only a few minor complaints about Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip. Most of the game is spectacularly enjoyable and wonderfully silly. For one: trying to get around on the car while using the map is frustrating. The map doesn’t tell you if the location you’re trying to get to is above or below, and the road system is so convoluted there’s no straight shot to get you where you need to be. The only way that seems to work the fastest is to get out of your car and walk to the location, which is counterintuitive to the whole point of the game. The other glaring problem is the need for audio. There are some things you need to find, like the wind chimes, that twinkle faintly if you’re nearby, but if you need to keep the volume off while playing, or you’re hard of hearing, completing the objectives will be impossible. It’s kind of disappointing that the developers didn’t think of an alternative to the sound, or made the edges of the screen shimmer or react when you’re close to something important.
The art in Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip is a low-poly mish-mash of human-like figures with their faces slowly sliding off. It’s almost as if a kid drew everything and the developers turned the drawing into a 3D copy. The level design of the buildings and structures, however, are not too wacky, and I feel like I’m walking around a downtown city. All the UI is straightforward and easy to understand. Every bit of the art is filled with “juice,” like it’s all reactive to what is happening in the world. All the characters wibble a little bit, the dialog boxes and text dance around the screen, it all feels alive and exciting.
The music in Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip might be one of my favorite parts in the game. There is a solid mix of perky whistling tunes, honky brass playing, and peaceful empty guitar strums to counter the bustle. Very similar to the different moods Animal Crossing has. My one beef I have with the music is switching from walking to driving is a little mediocre. The driving tune is always the same, and it always cuts to it abruptly instead of fading or transitioning. Besides that, even the cut scenes have the music timed to land the punch lines correctly.
In summary: superb silly writing, rambunctious gameplay, captivating art and emotional musical score.
Jordan played Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip on PC with a review code.
