Togges is the first project from Brazilian studio, Regular Studio. The game is published by Thunderful, a publisher that has unknowingly built a trusting relationship with me ever since I first played the Steamworld games. Although I haven’t played every title from Thunderful, I have enjoyed plenty to get excited whenever I see their logo in a game trailer.

Togges is a unique puzzle adventure featuring stackable adorable living cubes (which are also called “Togges”). The game is a classic collect-a-thon 3D platformer (or Stackformer, as they call it), which takes place in a beautifully handcrafted universe made up of multiple worlds. I’ve only explored the first two worlds thus far, but I’m excited to see the others.

“Togges is a sandbox 3D Stackformer about spreading and stacking adorable cubes around the cosmos!
Explore unique worlds, solve mysteries, and overcome challenges in this adventure to dominate the universe!”

From the Publisher (Thunderful)

Toomba is the main playable character in Togges. The design of Toomba is very closely based on the design of an iRobot Roomba vacuum — the name is also very similar. As Toomba, it is your job to help “King President” save (or dominate) the universe from the unknown threat of The Void!

Cute, Silly, Fun

From the very beginning, Togges sets its silly tone with a very Star Wars-esque opening crawl. The character of “King President” also works as a sort of goofy guide to keep the story moving forward. The music of Togges and sound effects also give off the impression of an ultimately fun, light-hearted and silly adventure. All of this together, creates an inviting universe open for exploration.

Stacking & Handling

My main concern with this game, before playing, was the stacking using a controller. Although I am primarily a console gamer, there are plenty of games that I would prefer to play on PC. Certain game mechanics work best with the mouse and keyboard. I’m not talking about First-Person Shooter (FPS) games, I’m mostly talking about games that require careful and precise selection or movement. Something like a level builder or a point-and-click adventure.

After playing Togges, I can now say that the developers have done a fantastic job with the stacking mechanic using my PlayStation 5 DualSense controller. I quickly figured out the proper movement speed while continuously stacking my “togges.”  The game also features a very clean design on their menus and tutorials. 

Unique, yet Familiar

Many times in the past, I have started a new game and immediately began comparing it to some other previous game I’ve played in the same genre. For instance, when playing a new Metroidvania some of my favorites come to mind, games like Hollow Knight and Guacamelee. Next, I start to compare them all, thinking what is this game doing right or wrong. What’s the same and what’s different.

What makes Togges unique and familiar is that I didn’t begin making comparisons until I had been playing for a couple of hours. This is all thanks to the game’s Stackforming mechanic — which is what sets Togges apart from other 3D platformers. In Togges, you are completing classic 3D platformer tasks — collecting items, solving puzzles — but you are also building your own platforms to help complete those tasks.

Once I became familiar with how to properly stack the “Togges” and get around, that’s when my brain began making comparisons. Comparisons to classic 3D platformers, like Super Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot. When collecting the letters to form the word “Togges,” I thought of the Tony Hawk Pro Skater games and the collection of S-K-A-T-E.

The more I play Togges the more I begin to think of games that I’ve played before. Last night, another recent Thunderful published game came to mind, LEGO Bricktales. In LEGO Bricktales, you must also solve puzzles by building objects and platforms, you sort of complete puzzles to solve puzzles.

Continue the Collect-a-thon?

Collect-a-thon games can usually be as short or as long as you want them to be. I plan to continue playing Togges, and making it to the end of the story. I just hope I don’t get too consumed with going after all of the collectibles. Many times in the past, I told myself I would find all of the items (or as many as I can) in a game, yet I have only done so in a handful of games.

I’m excited to explore more of these worlds, and see the different level designs. I really like that Togges is taking a classic game genre that I love and has added a new twist. It’s the twist of stacking “togges” that will keep me playing. Many times I quit a game after comparing it. I think I already played the better version of this game. 

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Togges is out now on consoles and PC.

*myVGBC.com was provided a review code for Togges by the publisher.