As a lifelong fan of adventure games of most play styles when a piratical adventure featuring a crazy redhead set out to befriend and rescue birds named Nelly Cootalot crossed my path I didn’t hesitate to back it. I also played the first game, Spoonbeaks Ahoy, during the campaign and fell in love with the absurd story and characters. Well, for the past couple months or so I’ve been privy towards the second game, dubbed The Fowl Fleet, as I have been testing it for bugs and other oddities before the game launches to the public later this month.
I’m happy to report that Nelly Cootalot is shaping up to be a great game and worth playing for those who enjoy a good comedy adventure with plenty of swashes to buckle. And, with the blessing of the developers I’ve been allowed to give a preview of the game for those so inclined to sail the seas with me. So as not to spoil the game I’ll try to refrain from talking too much about the plot. However, know this. You’re on a quest from your mentor to thwart the evil Baron Widebeard and whatever dastardly plot he’s been hatching.
While it is obviously not quite finished yet Nelly Cootalot most certainly looks ready to be unleashed upon the world by March 22. Most of the voice work is done and the characters sound amazing and quite quirky. The humour as one would expect from those following development is spot on and our intrepid heroine proves that she has the potential to be a great pirate but shows some major naivety towards the world. Which works both in her favor and makes the story all the more enjoyable as she tends to take things a bit too literal.
The music is also great and I may be biased but one of my favorite parts of what I’ve seen playing Nelly Cootalot so far is the folk song promised as part of one of the middling tiers of the Kickstarter. You might even recognize a name or two. The lyrics are bloody hilarious and worth listening to over and over. The rest of the soundtrack likewise doesn’t disappoint. In short, this game is a feast for all senses as well as the funny bone.
For those worried about the puzzles fret not. While there are a few headscratchers there none are wickedly impossible to figure out, which is a good thing to those not used to “moon logic” in older adventure games. I did get stuck once early on in my testing career but with a little prodding from the testing coordinator I manged to get through it easily and make it to the end. I seriously doubt that you’d quit the game from frustration, although some might end up taking time to figure out.
In short, Nelly Cootalot promises to be a great nautical adventure with hilarious situations and weird characters. Fans of a certain classic series from the ’90s should feel right at home here. I had once described this as if Monkey Island had a facelift…and if Guybrush had a sex change. And, honestly, I feel like this is a fair assessment.
