This review is for the limited edition physical release of Donut Dodo on Nintendo Switch from Pix N’ Love. This will cover the game and a little about the physical release itself.
The limited edition of Donut Dodo from Pix N’ Love comes with a reversible cover and a full color manual. The cover that comes standard is the yellow cover with Donut Dodo being shown prominently on the cover with Billy Baker kind of behind the bird. The reversed side (the one I prefer) features both Donut Dodo and Baker Billy Burns smiling on the cover, with the title at the bottom.
The color manual the game comes with looks beautiful, and I hope we will see more Switch games from companies like this in the future. It’s a nice touch, and looks really nice sitting above the game. The manual features a list of the stages, enemies, and items that span a most of its small amount of pages. The rest of it are a table of contents, story blurb, and controls.
Donut Dodo is an arcade platformer that pays tribute to those that came before it back in the 80s and 90s. Because of this, there isn’t much of a story to the game. You play as a baker named Billy Burns that has to run around collecting donuts to prevent Donut Dodo and it’s minions from taking them all.
Donut Dodo is an arcade platformer that has you jumping around platforms, running up and down ladders, avoiding enemies and other obstacles, all while trying to collect donuts. The game consists of five single screen stages and a bonus stage. In order to experience all five of the main stages, you have to be able to clear the previous stage. Collecting enough points by the end of the five stages, will allow you to play the sixth bonus stage.
The first stage is called Fun House Fiasco. This stage has Donut Dodo running across the top of the stage releasing flames that you have to avoid. Billy is tasked with avoiding these along with other enemies as he runs up and down the ladders to grab the donuts.
Construction Site Chaos is the second stage. In this stage, Donut Dodo is in the middle of the stage being lifted up and down on a giant donut. Billy has to run up and down ladders on either side of the stage and as he goes left from the left side of the stage, he will then find himself on the right side and vice versa.
Ferris Wheel Frenzy is the third stage and has Donut Dodo rotating in the center of the stage on a giant Ferris Wheel. There are ladders on the side that Billy can use to traverse up and down the platforms to collect donuts and avoid enemies.
Second to last stage is Candy Store Crush. This stage features a moving platform in the center of the stage with spikes below it. Instead of ladders, you have lollipops with really log rope-like sticks that Billy has to climb up and down on. Donut Dodo is at the top once again but can use the gumball machines to drop obstacles on Billy.
The final stage of the game is Donut Dodos Lair. This stage borrows from the arcade game Wrecking Crew, which was really nice to see. Instead of using ladders or lollipops, it uses doors that Billy uses to travel around the stage. This stage has Donut Dodo in the upper left-hand corner of the stage running back and fourth on a tiny platform. This seems a bit easier than in the previous stages, and I would have liked to have seen Donut Dodo play a more formidable component, given it’s their lair.
The way the game handles difficulty is kind of interesting. Instead of having a set difficulty, the game has you playing through the set of stages on the easy-medium difficulty. This means that you play the stages in two rounds, first round on easy, second round on medium. Once you beat both rounds, you can then play the game on medium-hard difficulty. Like the previous set, this is 2 rounds with the first round of stages set to medium, the second to hard. If you manage to beat all four rounds, you then can play the game on the Sugar Rush difficulty. With the Sugar Rush difficulty, the game is harder than the hard difficulty and the game is played in one round.
Donut Dodo features very bright and attractive colors. The enemy sprites along with Billy Burns are prominent and large against the stages they are traversing in. This helps them to really stand out, making it hard to lose track of them given the game’s fast-paced nature. All of the game’s animations are smooth and look really nice and being a side scrolling platformer, the game performs very well. This is something I expected and am glad I wasn’t disappointed with when playing.
The background music found in Donut Dodo is fun and whimsical. With the sound affects fitting the gameplay like a glove. Where a lot of arcade games, especially older games from the 80’s of which this game is based are repetitive and harsh, that’s not the case with Donut Dodo. This is due to it being a modern release with the appearance of being old. I am glad that they went with a modern take instead of intentionally being period accurate.
Donut Dodo is a modern take on what a classic arcade game is. The game itself is short but challenging. Performance is butter smooth and looks great in both handheld and docked mode. If you’re looking to scratch the arcade itch, Donut Dodo is definitely where it’s at and a game that is a must-play. Yes, it does have its flaws, but this is true for any game when you really stop and think about it.
The physical release of this game from Pix N’ Love is at a spot on price point and is a real bang for your buck. You’re getting a game that has both a reversible cover and full color manual. It’s a game that looks great on a shelf and is a wonderful addition to a physical Switch collection.
You can purchase a copy of the game here. A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
In addition to writing articles, Ryan Byers also creates content for his YouTube channel called "Obscure Games and Consoles", collects video games, and dabbles in video game development.