Yoku’s Island Express is an open world/metroidvania-style pinball adventure, Seamlessly blending platform navigation with pinball mechanics across a large open world. Yoku the dung beetle sets foot on the beach of Mokumana Island, ready to take on the duties as the new postman. But the ancient island God is trapped in a restless sleep and the islanders are plagued by quakes and storms brought forth by its nightmares. Yoku's Island Express is a unique and quirky adventure with handcrafted visuals, where you'll soar through the air, vacuum explosive snails, fight a Screetch, feed starving lemurs, discover the mystery of the Fruit Altar, wake an old god, and hopefully help tiny Yoku rebuild the island post-office.
About the story
Yoku's Island Express follows Yoku, a carefree dung beetle who arrives on Mokumana Island to take up duties as the new postmaster. But the island god is trapped in a nightmare-induced slumber, causing storms and tremors that threaten the land. As Yoku rolls through an open world packed with pinball-inspired traversal, he must awaken the ancient god, help eccentric islanders, vacuum explosive snails, feed starving lemurs, and restore the dilapidated post office. Beneath the whimsical visuals and light-hearted tone lies a metroidvania-style adventure that reveals island secrets and unlocks powerful abilities on a journey of tiny heroism.
Platforms
Switch PC PS4 XONEGenres
Adventure Arcade Indie Pinball Platform PuzzleThemes
Action Fantasy Open world
Languages: English and 10 more
| Interface | Audio | Subtitles | |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | |||
| French | |||
| Italian | |||
| German | |||
| Spanish (Spain) | |||
| Russian | |||
| Chinese (Simplified) | |||
| Japanese | |||
| Korean | |||
| English (UK) | |||
| Finnish |
Media
Critic Reviews
viewport
By FrostilyteThe art, music, exploration, and quests all make for a very enjoyable game, and the pinball concept is novel enough to distinguish the game from other members of the genre. The bosses and a large number of underwhelming upgrades don’t manage to overshadow what the game does well. While I found the pinball mechanics frustrating, your mileage may vary depending on your skill at pinball, and I still believe Yoku’s Island Express is worth a look in spite of this.
GameGrin
By Thomas HughesWith only a few small niggles to complain about, Yoku's Island Express successfully merges pinball and platforming without ever making the former feel like a gimmick. Its beautiful presentation and fun, engaging exploration blend together to create a truly unique experience.
PS4Blog.net
By TraceyYoku's Island Express is a very fun pinball/Metroidvania that you should check out on Nintendo Switch. The colorful art style and the great level design, mixed with the pinball mechanics and the Metroidvania side of things, make this a very entertaining release that everyone can enjoy, even those who are not a fan of full-on pinball games. Villa Gorilla HAS certainly found a creative way of presenting a new type of game, and one I'm sure you're going to like.
Worth Playing
By Cody MedellinYoku's Island Express is a game that you'll encourage others to check out the minute you start playing. Aside from the gorgeous aesthetics, the use of pinball mechanics is inspired, and the execution of the mechanics is done well. It's a relatively short experience, but it feels packed with tons of side-quests if you can deal with the backtracking seeming to go on a little longer than usual due to the pinball mechanics. Overall, Yoku's Island Express is a brilliant game that adventure fans need.
CFG Games
By Franky AbrahamIf you like pinball and adventure this is a must buy. Even for those wanting a new experience I can easily recommend this charming and beautiful game.
