Game Review: I Want To Go To Mars

By Al

Players: 1
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, XBox, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5

Every so often a game comes along for review where I'm not sure if even calling it a "game" is correct. I Want To Go To Mars falls exactly into that category, and it's a "game" (Don't worry, we'll get there soon!) that's coming soon to all major consoles. We're going to be taking a look at the Nintendo Switch version today, but I'm positive that it'll reflect the experience one will have no matter where they end up playing it. This is going to be a quick one, so let's jump right into it!

First off, I have to admit that the marketing of I Want To Go To Mars even refrains from calling it a "game" directly. The press release leading up to its release actually refer to it as a "storybook replacement". Even though that's a term I've never heard before in any capacity, I do feel like it's accurate in this case. This is a title that's meant for young children, and "plays" sort of like a very simplified version of an adventure game. That last part might be giving it a bit too much credit, but there were a few moments where I felt like I was playing a much stripped down homage to a Humongous Entertainment game.

I Want To Go To Mars places you into the role of Robyn, a boy who is playing a game of make believe with his stuffed friend, named Teddy. After their earlier play session is brought to a quick end by rain, they decide that they're going to go somewhere that's all desert: Mars. They could've easily gone to Arrakis, but I guess that's too deep a reference for a game like this. The game then details their many adventures on the way to Mars. The story never really goes into anything beyond that simple premise, but I don't think anyone expected a tale full of twists and turns here. With that in mind, by the end I felt that the story felt rather thin even for a storybook premise. I've read many a children's storybook that are full of richly detailed, and very interesting, plots, but this doesn't come close to that unfortunately.

There are about 7-8 actual playable sections in I Want To Go To Mars. A couple of them are simple find the object type minigames that are so simple that they might as well not be playable at all. Beyond that there are a few point and click "puzzles", and one gameplay segment that randomly turns into an arcade game. There is no fail state in any of these sections, but that makes sense since this is meant to be for children. Even though the game does claim that there is humor aimed at an older audience (as in parents), there weren't too many jokes that I felt would make anyone but a small child chuckle. Even then, there weren't a lot of laughs to be had. I don't want to judge too harshly, but I can't see the story and gameplay really holding one's attention for very long. Add to that the fact that it only takes about 20-30 minutes to complete the entire story, and you have an experience that is over just as soon as it starts.

Lack of gameplay aside, there are some aspects of I Want To Go To Mars that I enjoyed. The hand-drawn aesthetic looked pretty neat, and I thought that the Narrator was decently acted as well. Said Narrator is the only voiced character though, and it's unfortunate that the other characters remained silent throughout. Despite the fact that there wasn't much here that I found particularly entertaining, there were some points where I was more on board with the humor than others. The riddle game from the moon was particularly fun, even if the humor I got from it was due to the very random dialogue choices. Even that arcade-like section I mentioned earlier, which involves an "a-steroid" field by the way, was kind of neat. These sections were almost good enough to make me wonder what was going to come next. Unfortunately what came next was usually another fetch quest, so that feeling wore off rather quickly.

The biggest problem with I Want To Go To Mars has to be its accessibility even as a storybook replacement. I played this on the Nintendo Switch, the only platform on the list that's portable, and I still can't imagine a parent pulling out a Switch in order to read a story to their child. Reading/playing this on an XBox or a PS5? Yeah, I see that happening even less. The problem with games like this is that I don't think that there's any kid out there who really wants to play them. Games like this existed even when I was a very young child, and I still was much happier playing the latest Mario game instead of anything that was specifically trying to target me age group. I guess its $4.99 might entice some to pick it up in spite of this, but I really don't know who this game is actually made for.

While it pains me to say it, I don't think I can really recommend I Want To Go To Mars. It's a too simple to be fun, and the few good sections it does have are negated by how short the entire experience is. Perhaps if this was a bonus piece of content attached to a physical storybook, then I could see the market for it. As it stands, I just don't see who this is for. I guess it's cheap enough to try out if the trailer interests you, but I think most people would be better off just picking up a storybook instead.

Check Out I Want To Go To Mars on Nintendo Switch:
https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/i-want-to-go-to-mars-switch

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Story: B
Gameplay: C
Graphics: B+
Music/Sound: B
Value: B+

Overall: B-

Pros:
+ A cute story about a child's imaginary trip to Mars.
+ The art and designs are great, and the animation is decently done as well.
+ There are a few entertaining moments throughout the game, such as the riddle section with The Moon.
+ Though not really a "game" in the standard sense of the term, it can serve as the "storybook replacement" it's marketed as.
+ At just $4.99, it isn't a hefty purchase if you're casually interested.

Cons:
- The simplistic gameplay sections don't seem like they'd hold anyone's attention very long, not even a small child's.
- Even though the Narrator does a great job voicing his role, it's unfortunate that the other characters have no voice acting at all.
- I don't see kids wanting to play something like this over the latest Mario game.
- Writing, editing, and publishing this review took several times longer than actually playing through the entire game.

A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.

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