The Smurfs: Mission Vileaf

Based on one of the most iconic animated series of all time, The Smurfs - Mission Vileaf takes all the magic the Smurfs are known for and condenses it into an exciting platforming experience made just for the younger players. Cheery, colorful, and undeniably fun, this is the perfect title to introduce kids to the world of action platforming.

Just when it seemed like the popularity of licensed games was something you could only find in mobile games, Mission Vileaf demonstrates that there’s still a place in the gaming industry for mascot platformers. Granted, this might not be the most mechanically solid game, but it still manages to be a more than serviceable one in almost every regard.

Colorful Adventures

Much like Super Lucky’s Tale, the world of The Smurfs - Mission Vileaf is a colorful wonderland. Everything looks bright and sweet, maybe a bit too bright for some gamers – the cartoony look might be great for younger players, but it comes with an unexpected set of difficulties.

For starters, the cartoon textures vary greatly in resolution quality. While some elements of the environment look fantastic, some other textures, like the ground or some of the vegetation, look absolutely dreadful. However, considering that the character models look nice and the animations are rich and fluid, some muddy textures can be forgiven.

Exploring the Forest

While platforming is the core of Mission Vileaf’s gameplay, there’s also a great deal of exploration involved in the whole process. Every level is designed with verticality in mind, so players won’t relive their worst nightmares of old-school collectathons with huge flat levels.

Even though there’s a lot of emphasis on exploration, each level is surprisingly limited in scope. That means that some levels feature some of that old PS1 style fog at the bottom of every cliff – a clever way of making levels look much bigger than they actually are.

Like a collectathon, players will have to seek every corner of every level to find upgrades for the Smurfizer – which is a weapon that lets your Smurfs rescue the villagers that have been infected by the Vileaf plants.

Choose and Play

In the world of The Smurfs, your profession basically describes your entire personality. That’s why Papa Smurf is the leader, and Chef Smurf just cooks. Mission Vileaf features four of the most iconic Smurfs to choose from: Brainy Smurf, Chef Smurf, Hefty Smurf, and Smurfette.

As we mentioned before, the character models look nice enough. It’s great to see that the developers went with the Smurf’s original designs, choosing to ignore the more “modern” ones we saw in the live-action movies.

Mechanically speaking, the controls are easy to grasp, ideal for younger players who might pick this one up as their first platforming game. For older players, however, Mission Vileaf might be a tad too simple to stomach. This is a game best reserved for younger players, or as a family experience if you want to share a game with the family.

Pros

• Colorful visuals
• Entertaining gameplay for younger players
• Charming environments and character designs

Cons

• Some confusing level design
• Muddy textures in some places