Fantasy Friends: Under the Sea [Switch]

7 Nov

Xaloc Studios are back with a new instalment to the Fantasy Friends world: Under the Sea! Building on the foundation of the previous title, Fantasy Friends: Under the Sea has twelve new, adorable pets for you to hatch from eggs and look after, including an octopus, a dogfish and a narwhal! If you’ve played the previous game, you’ll know most of what you need to do here - making it nice and easy to jump into - but even if this is your first venture with the Fantasy Friends, it’s not too difficult to pick up.

Each pet has their own little set of meters to judge their wellbeing in a bunch of different areas, from hunger to hygiene levels as well as boredom. Making sure to spend some time with each creature, feeding them, brushing and cleaning them, as well as playing simple, fun mini-games with them will keep them at peak happiness, earning you coins in the process that can be used to purchase additional eggs, as well as different customisation options such as wearable accessories and alternate skins.

The twelve new pet designs are cute, with designs ranging from fish, to mer-bunnies and more. As with the previous title, they’ve each got two forms once they’ve hatched from their eggs - a younger ‘baby’ form, and a full-grown form once you’ve taken good enough care of them. Our daughter, Eva, absolutely loved the creatures this time round - having recently had an obsession with Roblox’s Adopt Me, and falling in love with all of the creatures available through the Ocean Eggs - this was a perfect lineup for her.

Controls are nice and straightforward once again, given that this is a game primarily targeting younger audiences. There’s a decent bit of reading to be done, when Aurea is speaking to your character, however no dialogue means that younger kids who haven’t yet learned to read will need someone beside them to point them in the right direction - at least to begin with. There are more mini-games to play with your pets this time round, adding more fun options on how to interact with your pets.

Overall, it’s a great game for kids, and with a bit more to it than its predecessor, is a good evolution for those in particular who’ve already built up knowledge from the first game. Available for £22.49 on the Switch eShop, it’s a little cheaper than the previous title was, and given that you can nab a physical copy for cheaper again (£21.99 at present) from the likes of Smyths, this would be a great choice for any younger kids this Christmas.