A lesson in how not to make a game.
Oh boy. I really don’t like being mean about video games, but the 100 in 1 Game Collection is really making it hard not to be a tad mean. I’m a positive guy, I really am, but it’s been a struggle to play this.
The struggle is not from the content of the game itself, although at times it was. No, the struggle has been how these developers have structured the way in which players actually experience this game.
Here is how the game describes itself from the official Nintendo Web Site:
“Meet Magrat the Witch, Harvey the Weird Fish, Stephanie the Green Cow and all their beloved friends, and embark on an epic journey through 100 arcade games that blend classic gameplay from your favorite retro titles with new concepts that are reinventing the arcade genre! Score as much as you can, then improve and challenge yourself to get all stars in solo or with your friends!”
100 in 1 Game Collection, despite the title, is actually a linear story-driven game! That’s right, this game has a story. Said story, if you can even actually call it that, anyway, is that you play as a green alien-looking thing being taken on a journey by the game’s guide to different locations to try out games. These different locations are the platforms to launch into various games to play in these zones. For example, you start at Tutorial Island or another place is Fantasy Island.
Once you get to one of these locations, all the game’s issues make themselves known! First of all, there is a driveling, boring narrative of inconsequential dialogue between you and the guide. Then, the first game in the area is unlocked (with, again, more boring chatter to get through) for you to play. As you play, you get ranked on how well you did and can acquire 1 to 3 stars. These stars need to be used to unlock the next game. So, yes, every single game from the start is locked behind this linear progression per area!
After you play the first mini-game, you again have to sit and go through some boring dialogue about what you just did to then get to the next game. However, you can only unlock each game in order, so if you don’t like one of the games in a location, tough, you have to play it to unlock the next. At worst, you may not even get one star because you don’t even really understand what you are supposed to do, so every game after is locked until you do.
To add insult to an already sore injury, the guide (who looks like Mr. DNA from the Jurassic Park films) ironically is saying what you are thinking. In what I think was an attempt to break the 4th wall, it just turns into a self-destructive mess. What I mean by that is the guide’s dialogue is actually saying the negative thoughts you are thinking in real life. For example, “This next game is torture”, or “The physics of that last game weren’t good, were they?”. It’s like the game itself knows that at some points it’s not actually very good.
Then, let’s say you actually enjoy one of the games you have played. It’s then really difficult to remember which one it was or to go back and find it. You have to remember its location and then scroll through each screen. If each game/area had a very distinct theme, then this would have made the process a lot easier, but some games could easily have been found under many different themes. For example, do you think the game “Spitting Frogs” is found in Tutorial Island or Fantasy Island?
Why lock every game behind a linear system? Why subject players to one of the most mind-numbing narratives in gaming history? No one in their right mind has bought a game that has “100 in 1 Games” in the title, only to then expect a story game. You will simply want access to each game to pick and choose from the get-go what to play. Why self-depreciate and even have a dialogue of “you’re bored” or criticize the game engineers of the very game you are playing? Why spend so much time and effort on the story that no one wanted? The game’s structure has got to be one of the most baffling things I have ever come across in my twenty-year history of gaming journalism.
However, there are some positives. Let’s get past the fact that you have to unlock in a progression system and suffer awful dialogue for 100 games, because, yes, there are 100 games here. Some of these range from quite a lot of fun to completely useless. That’s to be expected, as I’m sure you wouldn’t expect everything to be amazing. What makes a few of the games annoying, though, is simply not enough direction on what to actually do or how to play.
So, the good points are that there is a fantastic variety of games on offer. Many of them are glorified or simplified mobile games. There are also modern versions of classic games; for example, Asteroids or simply karting around a track. Some games are like the card game “Pairs” or an origami test. Most, to be honest, are over in just a few seconds, but there are a few that last a few minutes. My favourite of these was a classic pinball machine game.
One of the most mind-bending aspects about this whole game, though, is that the presentation, graphics, and audio are actually superb! They have put an awful lot of effort into these aspects of the game. Ironically, it’s the last thing they should have actually focused on, but here, it feels like it was the first!
As I sit and type this, I have the game’s audio on beside me, and it’s fantastic. The vibe is one of a Disney-esque, big-budget feature film, on loop. This is just for one of the levels, let alone the entire selection you have.
The graphics for 100 in 1 Game Collection are extremely clear, colourful, and exceptionally drawn. Even basic games like Dodo Run (a game where you simply press the jump button to jump over things coming at you) have excellent backgrounds and animations for the characters on the screen.
Also, there are many games that can be played by two people at the same time. It’s unfortunate that you can’t sort the games list into different categories to find them, but the options are there.
Finally, there is the issue of the price. Digitally or physically, the price of this game approaches £30. That is steep for what you get. Although on the surface, you are getting 100 games at around £0.30 per pop for that price, a lot of the games are over in seconds and will not be of interest. Even the ones that are good won’t hold your interest for that long. I would have preferred 50 games of better quality rather than 100 quick, cheap, and simple ones.
Summary
100 in 1 Game Collection has to be one of the most bizarre games I’ve played in a long time, and all for the wrong reasons. I came here to play a selection of games. I didn’t come here to have to grind through a pathetic story to unlock games I didn’t want to play, just to find some that I did. Even when I did come across the odd fun game to play, it was hard to go back and find it as the menu system is terrible. Conversely, for this genre, where the game didn’t need to excel, it actually does! This game has superb, smooth, and detailed graphics, alongside some excellent presentation and audio! The game, in short, is kind of a pretty-looking mess!
Developer: Digital Bards
Publisher: Maximum Entertainment
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Release Date: 22nd May 2025
