Mr. Shifty: A Fast-Paced Explosive Adventure

You'll be shifting through bullets and flames in no time as you play through this latest installment in tinyBuild's library of games! Mr. Shifty is top down shooter with game play that is very similar to 2012's "Hotline Miami". One notable twist, as indicated by the title, is the players ability to shift through walls and around opponents in order to clear the various rooms of each level.

This shifting ability isn't just a gimmick- it's vital to the players success. Shifting allows you to move quickly on a map filled with many dangers such as flamethrowers, guns (where one shot will kill
you), or even tons of enemies that rush at you. The player isn't able to simply spam the "shift" button to advance either, since Mr. Shifty is limited to 5 consecutive shifts before needing a cool-down period. This ensures that the player doesn't just rush through a level and strategy becomes just as important as shifting.

The shifting mechanism allows the player to dash through walls and around enemies.

Strategizing will always get you through a level, but sometimes looking around before trying a direct approach to enemies will make things easier. The player has the option to trick enemies into making mistakes such as blowing themselves up or shooting other NPCs- making Mr. Shifty's job even easier.

Another neat mechanic of Mr. Shifty is the slow-mo mode. If Mr. Shifty is able to land enough punches, and fill the on-screen meter, a successful dodge of a bullet will activate the slow-mo ability.
This ability slows the game down, allowing the player to maneuver to a safe spot or take out multiple enemies at once. This is very useful for getting out of tight situations in the game, and sometimes can make or break an attempt at completing a room.

After filling the on-screen gauge, dodging a bullet activates slow-mo mode, allowing you to escape any sticky situations.

Mr. Shifty will prove to be worth your time as it boasts 18 stages over 140 different levels. There is hours worth of gameplay here and players will find themselves replaying levels after initial runs to find faster/more efficient ways to finish.

Testing this game on the Nintendo Switch in handheld mode proved to be delightful. The graphics are very sharp and Mr. Shifty runs flawlessly. However when shifting (no pun intended) the game onto the television via docked mode, members of Gamesakes did experience some slow-down. However it is worth noting that graphically the game was solid when upped to the larger screen.

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After all matters are taken into account, we at Gamesakes would highly recommend giving Mr. Shifty a try. Shifting through walls and planning each move was still highly satisfying even after hours of gameplay. The price-point of $14.99 seems very fair for the amount of time players will be able to sink into this game.

Considering all pros and cons, Mr. Shifty settles in at a solid 8 out of 10. At times the shifting mechanism can become difficult to keep up with, and mixing yourself up with NPC characters becomes a bit too easy. The games slow down when in docked mode was also an issue, however this is most likely fixable with an update.

Despite these two small problems, Mr. Shifty is definitely worth your time! Be sure to check it out on the Nintendo Switch eShop or Steam on April 13th!