Ayo the Clown [Switch]
Developed and published by Cloud M1, Ayo the Clown is a whimsical 2.5D platformer where you play as the titular clown, whose puppy has been kidnapped. The game begins with an introductory story, told in such a way that it feels like a bedtime story. As Ayo, you’ll have to travel through the world in search of your four-legged friend, asking everyone you meet if they’ve seen him.
As you progress through the story, coming across various NPCs, you’ll gain additional abilities that will help you on your quest. It starts off simply, with just walking – and special froggy-blocks that enable you to bounce to higher platforms. You’ll soon gain the ability to jump without these frogs, and more and more abilities like this are unlocked as you go. There are funny checkpoints that will pie you in the face, and Ayo makes lots of adorable little sounds as he toddles and jumps around, which all ties into a very cutesy, child-friendly package.
Visually, Ayo the Clown is gorgeous, with lots of bright colours and very aesthetically pleasing environments. Everything has a very smooth, soft look to it - and you’ll be able to catch a ride on huge balloons to reach higher areas, or utilise a smaller balloon to float short distances via an ability you’ll learn. Ayo even gains access to temporary weapons such as a little balloon sword that he can use to defend himself against enemies - adding to the overall look. Characters are super adorable, and the general style of the game works well – and definitely has that kid-factor to draw younger audiences in. Similarly, the audio is very joyful and happy which works well, but in the earlier stages almost gives off that slightly generic “Build-a-Sim” menu vibe, that could have used a little more personality. Later levels, such as the crystal caves have a much more relevant, pleasant tune, with very sparkly, tinkly tones to add to it.
Controls wise, it feels satisfying to jump around and learning the later abilities is a lot of fun too. Each time a new ability is learned, a short cutscene plays in the same style as the intro, with a character presenting Ayo with the required know-how. Combat is simple, with most enemies requiring just a boop with your sword or a water balloon, or even just by jumping on them Goomba style. Smacking them with a big ol’ squeaky rubber mallet is a lot of fun too. Sadly, the part where this falls down slightly is that on occasion throughout the course of the game you’ll find yourself dying after a jump doesn’t quite register, bumping you straight into enemies or off of edges - and that gets super frustrating, fast.
Levels have a really good variety to them, which prevents things from feeling stale. Levels evolve as you progress, so you’ll make good use of the range of abilities you’ve learned, from ground pounds to break through certain platforms, to wall jumps, vine climbing and more - and utilising these is necessary for finding collectibles and reaching other areas. There’s a decent amount of collectibles hidden throughout the levels, with three lollipops and teddies in each level, as well as different toys to fill up the Treasure Chest that can be found in the pause menu. Secret areas are hidden in walls, and whilst they could be easy to miss if you don’t lean into them - they’re not difficult to find if you’re actively looking. Finding each of these collectibles goes towards your overall level ranking, and are marked individually in the level overview - so it’s easy to know which levels you’ll need to revisit to pick up any you’ve missed. Sadly, playing the level again resets the collectibles, so you’ll need to grab everything again.
There are upgrades that you can purchase from the in-game merchant, found in town. These can give you various boosts such as balloon upgrades, and cost quite a significant amount of gems. Gems can be found all throughout levels, but even with picking them all up as diligently as you can, it’s still a bit of a stretch to afford anything (let alone everything!) – so it’s definitely a bit grindy in that aspect. Especially considering you lose any gems you’ve picked up upon death (annoyingly, including some of the ones just prior to the checkpoints) so it will take a fair bit of time to save up. However, there are some fishing pond areas found in the overworld, where catching fish will net you some gems - and this will give you a good boost. If you’re looking for a nice, simple platformer to pass the time or a new game for the kids, and you like the sound of this - then you can pick up Ayo the Clown for £14.89 on the Switch eShop.
In the end, we decided to give Ayo the Clown the Collecting Asylum rating of 7.5/10.
Have you played Ayo the Clown yet? What did you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!
- V x
Thank you to Cloud M1 for the Ayo the Clown Switch review code!
