Turnip Boy Robs a Bank

A couple of weeks ago, I experienced the wonderfully criminal glory that is Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion. As a Zelda-lite game, it managed to introduce a colourful cast of food-based characters in a straightforward, yet very fun, adventure.

Now Turnip Boy is back and committing more nefarious deeds. What could possibly go wrong?

Many thanks to the publishers for the review code.

ONIONS ELEVEN
Set right after the events of the first game, the titular Turnip Boy joins up with the Pickled Gang to execute a daring heist on the Botanical Bank. Stinky, the bank manager, seems to be hiding the motherlode of all hauls, and it’s up to you to help the gang retrieve it.

It’s a simple narrative, being even more straightforward than his previous tax evading antics, but of course the beauty with the story is in the writing. Snoozy Kazoo are far more confident with Turnip Boy’s world now, and it feels far more cohesive as a result. The previous game had real consequences after the events following the true final boss, and that has had a clear impact on its residents. Their previous relationships have been expanded on, and there are interesting new characters for you to meet too. All of them are a joy to speak to, and quite a few have their own side missions for you to fulfil – even if they’re mostly just fetch missions.

Even though the world and its residents may seem mostly familiar, Turnip Boy Robs a Bank is a far different game to its predecessor. Gone are the puzzles and the exploration, in favour of a new all-guns-blazing action game. Those who are familiar with the series may be sceptical as to how this would fare, considering the action was by far the weakest element of the original, but they’ve actually done a great job at enhancing it. The twin-stick action is really fast and responsive, and even the relatively useless ‘tripping’ action has now turned into a pretty useful dodge manoeuvre now.

The main gameplay loop is quite simple, and one you’ll get used to within minutes of playing. Starting out with two weapons (which is all you’ll be able to carry), you work your way through the bank trying to steal as much as possible. More weapons can be acquired via random drops, and each one is sillier than the last. There’s leaf trimmers, scythes, money launchers, and much more. Some are definitely better than others, but the game encourages you to grab anything you can in order to recycle them into new starting weapons.

Obviously, stealing money is a big part of the game and you can acquire it by various means: as well as killing enemies, you can shake down innocent clients for any of their loose change, laser open safes, blow open vaults, and so on. Most of the main areas to acquire money are found on the upper floors, which can be accessed by the various elevators scattered around the bank. These areas are where the randomised elements come into play, as each run will have them lead to different locations. Elevator markings will indicate the type of area that they’ll lead to, giving you a fair idea of what to expect, but the layouts all feel very similar that most tend to blend together after a while.

You’ll want to visit these areas a lot early on as money is key to progression. In order to get to the next area, you’ll need to use your cash to buy something from the Dark Web. An example of this is a character who wants you to have a cardboard box in order to get through into the restricted area. After saving up to buy one, you will then be allowed to pass and make your way towards the next boss. It feels like a trite progression system at times, often feeling a little forced; it’s not so bad earlier on as you purchase C4 and Pickaxes, but buying a ‘build a bridge’ kit just feels like the game is forcing you to grind cash for a while.

Dark Web purchases aren’t the only things stopping you from progressing, as there are certain doors that require certain levels of security authorisation. To open these doors, you’ll need a special keycard gained from defeating a boss. As with Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion, these foes are generally quite silly and pretty fun to fight. Unfortunately this is also one of those games where the endgame forces you to refight all of them one after another, which is only made worse by a finale that is both tedious and frustrating – especially as the hit to the framerate makes it feel like a unbearable slideshow.

And that leads me too one of my major gripes with Turnip Boy Robs a Bank: the framerate is absolutely appalling at times. Whilst the end sequence is easily the worst offending section, there’s still many times than the game takes a notable hit. Laser rooms tend to be the biggest offenders, but pretty much any room with a lot going on is likely going to slow down a lot. Hopefully they can get this fixed soon enough, as it does spoil the experience quite a lot.

VERDICT
Turnip Boy’s foray into twin-stick action works well for the most part. They really enhanced the combat mechanics this time around, and it makes for a really great feeling fast-paced action game. It’s a shame that the performance issues and a shoddy end-game spoil what could have been a really great sequel. Hopefully the development team can fix and expand upon the game in the near future and make the game as special as it deserves to be.