If you’re into games about humanoid vegetables with mafia connections (who isn’t?), the latest game in the Turnip Boy series should get your crop growing.
This time around, Snoozy Kazoo, creators of the beloved root veggie, have taken their lighthearted dungeon crawler and shoved a rocket up it.
READ MORE: Review | Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (PlayStation 5)
The first game was a basic dungeon crawler with a few puzzles here and there, but now Turnip Boy has been given a roguelike makeover — and it hits just right.
After defeating Mayor Onion back in Turnip Boy Commits Tax Fraud, Veggieville has taken a turn for the worse.
This tasty town is in ruin, tax fraud is rampant and the gang war is reaching new heights.
READ MORE: Review | Tekken 8 ‘Gorgeous, fluid, fast and impactful’ (PS5)
Turnip Boy has teamed up with the Pickled Gang for his next big mission. Clueless, he sets out to rob the biggest bank in the world — just because.
This game’s humour blends perfectly with my own. The puns, the stupid antics and wild interactions tickle my pickle.
READ MORE: Review | The Last of Us Part II Remastered (PlayStation 5)
Turnip Boy is a straight-up asshole, he just doesn’t know it. His innocence and little smile add to this game’s wholesome stupidity.
He may not say much, but his actions are stronger than words.
Pitchforks and the Dark Web
After smashing your way through the bank in a truck, you’ve got two minutes until the fuzz show up. You need to run in fast, take as much money as you can hold and make your escape.
If you escape with your money, you’ll get to keep it. But if you die while in the bank a big chunk of it will be lost.
There is the option to stay and keep grabbing cash, but on the first few runs it’s best to make a break for it. Staying sees the enemies progressively get tougher and your wanted level increases.
The developers have gone for a GTA-styled wanted approach, with up to five stars. I found this system a little obsolete in the beginning, but the end game had me watching the cops.
You’ll need to use a twin-thumb stick approach to be the most effective in combat. One stick keeps you Turnip Boy moving and dodging, the other aims your weapon.
READ MORE: Review | Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth ‘Goofy, heartfelt and exciting’ (PlayStation 5)
There’s two different ways to play: Playstyle A, a more casual experience, or Playstyle B, tougher battles and harder enemies.
Playstyle B provides enough challenge for the seasoned gamer, and you’ll still get plenty of joy out of the more casual approach.
Back at your hideout, where you retreat to after every run, there’s a few handy vendors for you to upgrade your gear.
Turnip Boy can surf the ‘dark web’ to order items to assist in your next run. There’s a lot of weird stuff that’s sold out, but items like the pickaxe are handy to smash some otherwise unbreakable statues.
There’s also an upgrade store to boost Turnip Boy’s melee damage, health, and money bag size – just to name a few. Additionally, you can recycle guns picked up on a run to unlock new and more powerful starting weapons.
There’s an array of bizarre weaponry available, from singing clam shells to satanic cannons. The weapon variety is exceptional.
READ MORE: Review | Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (PlayStation 5)
Once you head back into the bank, everything resets besides defeated bosses. While there’s no downside to clocking up runs, you want to make the most out of each one to avoid dragging out this game more than needed.
It’s short and sweet by design.
Baddies and The Bank
The world (or the bank) is split into four quadrants, each with their own biomes, so to speak.
These areas all have their own boss guarding them, each more ridiculous than the last.
A favourite of mine tries to distract you with various ASMR videos of slime and soap on either sides of the screen. That’s a new one…
Boss battles are broken up into stages, with mobs spawning during the round to try and slow you down. As this is a roguelike, I dreaded the thought of having to repeatedly beat the boss in each run, thankfully you just need to beat them once (at least in the beginning).
While exploring the bank, you’ll come across elevators. These elevators will take you to a random floor of the bank. It’s on these floors you’ll discover quest items and valuable loot.
One office floor I found looked very familiar…
READ MORE: Review | Hands-on with the PlayStation Portal ‘A Taste of the Future’
The bank is filled with side quests, like this (familiar) self-absorbed streamer refusing to pay a designer for some artwork — it’s a little too real…
Other side quests see you join the Shroominati, sign a peace treaty, get knighted and help a couple of berries get hitched. There’s a world of quirky tasks at hand.
READ MORE: Review | Life of Delta (PlayStation 5)
On a couple of occasions, I unintentionally discovered a quest item and had it ready to hand in before I understood what was going on. But there are so many on offer, it didn’t bother me too much.
I got stuck on a particular quest and there was little to no guidance on where to find a particular item. After a few laps of the map I found it, but I feel a hint could’ve saved me a bunch of time.
Pulling out the weeds
This is not a widescreen experience, Turnip Boy Robs A Bank is entirely 4:3. Another wild decision, but it works.
The art style has had a slight refresh since the first game. What was once a flat Zelda-esque world now feels much more defined and vibrant.
READ MORE: Review | House Flipper 2 (PC)
It’s not a very demanding game graphically, so there’s no surprise it ran well on the Xbox Series X. But I did find on the rare occasion characters and items could clip through walls.
Sweet, dulcet tones
The soundtrack to this game is incredible. It shines diversity, from the opening sequence to the closing credits. No genre is off-limits.
While the majority of the music is instrumental, there’s a few tracks featuring vocals – these were some of my favourites.
You’re able to create your own playlist, so it’s worth taking note of your favs.
READ MORE: Review | Pokémon Scarlet And Violet: The Indigo Disk (Switch)
Credit to Snoozy Kazoo composer James Currier, his work on this game was a highlight.
Pick of the crop
After initial fears the game would become repetitive, it kept throwing new ideas, areas and exciting story moments at me to keep it fresh.
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank goes to unexpected places, as the first game was rather contained. It was a nice surprise to see the developers take it to another level.
It’s a great game to smash out in an evening, I completed it in just over four hours. It’s a worthy sequel and I hope there are many more Turnip Boy adventures to come.
Quest Daily scores Turnip Boy Robs a Bank:
8.5/10
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank is out now on Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch and PC. It’s also available through Xbox Game Pass.
