Grindstone [Switch]
Grindstone, developed by Capybara Games, originally began its life as an Apple Arcade title back in 2019. Now it has made its way to Switch and we couldn’t be happier. You play as Jorj, a big, beefy barbarian who must chop and slice his way through the dozens upon dozens of enemies in his wake across 200+ levels. The intro animation gives you a little bit of backstory - Jorj wants to earn money to go on holiday somewhere warm, and working his way to the top of Grindstone mountain is his way of doing that.
Each level has you plan out your course of action, working your way from enemy to enemy. You must stick to the one colour, unless passing through colourful grindstones that allow you to switch - granting you even more massive combos. Once you’ve laid out your path, Jorj will get to work, and it is just so satisfying. And with plenty of weapons and gear to utilise, as well as plenty of blood - this definitely isn’t your usual colour-matching game. Chaining more and more enemies will gain you Grindstones, and other resources for crafting can be picked up along the way. The level of challenge increases as you go, with enemies charging up for attack in larger and larger numbers, and bigger, stronger enemies making an appearance on the grid. This all gives you extra to keep in mind, as not only do you have to pay attention for working out the best route to slice and dice, but checking where you’ll end up is important too, as ending near a charged up enemy won’t end well for Jorj.
Visually, Grindstone is impressive. Many games in this ‘genre’ are very samey when compared to one another and whilst there are definite similarities, Grindstone manages to carve out its own unique look whilst retaining a very recognisable Capybara-style. It is actually a huge disservice to Grindstone when comparing it to other colour-matching games, as it truly goes above and beyond any other I’ve witnessed. Back at the Inn, a hub world of sorts, you can visit Knifr to craft new weapons and Ødger for costumes such as Santa or Cupid (that have their own unique effects); Helgä’s Slop House, where you can craft meals to take with you on your travels that will give you certain benefits; Lagr the bartender can give you access to health and challenges, and all of this makes the world feel far more in-depth than any other colour-matcher we’ve seen.
The enemies - known as creeps, jerks, slobs and more - are all interestingly designed with a mixture of funny, cute and grotesque. The audio is pretty funky, and works great alongside the gameplay to keep things feeling fresh, fun and interesting. It’s a very varied and addictive soundtrack, and it has actually just recently went up for preorder on an absolutely gorgeous vinyl from iam8bit - one which I absolutely need to get my hands on ASAP. It’s very easy to lose yourself for hours upon hours in Grindstone - it just feels so satisfying to play, and manages to be super fun yet relaxing at the same time. It’s great to challenge yourself to get longer and longer combos, as doing so will enable you to get even better rewards. There are also stronger enemies that will require you to have a chain of at least 10 enemies, etc. before you can attack them, and this encourages you to always keep an eye out for the best path. You’ll also sometimes come across enemies holding keys, and attacking them will unlock the chest shown within the level, for you to collect when you pass through it. Bosses are fought in varying ways too, such as hitting bombs towards them within levels, and this helps to change things up a bit and keep it feeling fresh.
Controls are well explained, and the pacing is controlled by you - so going back and forth to check for the best route is actively encouraged. You of course have the set number of enemies to wipe out before each door unlocks, but you can continue to grind out larger and larger combos well beyond this if you please. Understandably, enemies can get a little pissy with you at times (after all, you are slicing and dicing their brethren!), gaining a somewhat fiery glow to them, so you may want to prioritise wiping those out when you can. As mentioned before, don’t end your turn in a spot next to one of these guys - as they’ll deal you some damage. The longer you stay in a level beyond the door unlocking, the more enemies will become enraged, making it harder and harder to end a turn without taking damage. There are some new levels added in the most recent update, hidden in a cave on the way up the mountain, and completing these will net you a new blueprint!
Grindstone is a game I can see myself coming back to, time and time again. It has the benefit of having an absolutely huge amount of short levels that you can pick up or put down at short notice, as well as a relatively relaxing playstyle that allows you to just switch-off and enjoy the fluidity of Jorj’s moves as you work your way through the levels. New enemy types as well as different items and path blocks are introduced throughout the game, innovating on the gameplay and preventing things from feeling stale. You’ll continue to learn as you go, improving upon your techniques and picking out better routes to maximise your destruction, as well as utilising any abilities that you’ve gained. And with modes such as the Daily Grind, to encourage you to come back every day, as well as new updates continually being added (including the most recent, a twist to the Daily Grind: Fortune Grind, which adds a ‘wheel of fortune’ style spin to change things up), there’s plenty here to keep you interested. Overall, we had a great time with Grindstone and would definitely recommend it to those who are looking for a fun puzzle game to pass the time. If you want to pick this up, it’s available for the fab, great-value price of just £15.09 on the Switch eShop.
In the end, we decided to give Grindstone the Collecting Asylum rating of 10/10.
Have you played Grindstone yet? What did you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!
- V x
Thank you to Capybara Games for the Grindstone Nintendo Switch review code!
