Review: B.ARK

• Platforms: Nintendo Switch (Reviewed), PC via Steam
• Developer:  Tic Toc Games
• Publisher: Tic Toc Studios
• Release Date: July 29th, 2021

I’ve developed a deep appreciation for couch co-ops that manage to engross not only your game-obsessed friends but your novice gamer friends, as well. The game has to balance between engaging and challenging while still being simple enough to catch on quickly. B.ARK is, without a doubt, one of those games.

B.ARK is an action-packed shooter game published by TicToc Games. The game’s emotional prologue introduces you to your four adorable co-pilots, as well as Milla, the robotics engineer and human companion of the group. Unfortunately, the evil Dark Tide, a cybernetic fish army that wants to wipe out humanity, threatens your team. Milla ultimately decides to save her furry friends by shooting off their escape pod. So now, it’s up to you and your team to find Milla and save Earth from the evil Dark Tide.

As you travel through the solar system, you and your party encounter increasingly difficult enemies and obstacles. The gameplay itself is quick and engaging – as one of my friends noted, it feels like “horizontal Galaga.” Despite its classic side-scroller nature, the levels themselves never feel redundant. The replay value feels high because the winner can change after every playthrough. Of course, it all depends on how many enemies you destroy, how many times you rescue a struggling co-pilot, and how much plutonium you acquire.

In addition to gripping gameplay, B.ARK features a cast of cutely drawn characters, each operating their own spaceship. Each animal has their own unique powers and abilities, encouraging you to effectively strategize with your fellow players. Barker the Dog and Felicity the Cat act as the prominent gunmen, whereas Lucio the Bear can equip a defensive shield, and Marv the Rabbit shoots honing bullets. Though all the characters display powerful weaponry, Lucio and Marv’s powers are absolutely the most useful. 2D side scrollers naturally limit the camera, making precise shooting and evasion more challenging. The shield and honing bullets are lifesavers in pivotal boss battles, whereas Barker and Felicity’s standard guns can feel tough to maneuver.

While this game can be completed solo, the level design greatly encourages group collaboration. B.ARK effectively fosters communication and cooperation between players. With the number of chaotic ambushes your party experiences, it can be frustrating to attempt completing them on your own! Despite its inherently collaborative nature, there’s still plenty of autonomy for each character. If one of the other co-pilots goes down during the run, you can save them to allow them to heal and shoot their gun independently.

One significant issue is the size of the dialogue boxes presented within the levels. There’s no voice acting in the game, just a series of grunts and sound effects for each of the characters. This wouldn’t be a problem if the dialogue boxes weren’t in such a small font size and were incredibly wordy. It’s fine during the levels’ introduction, but it’s frustrating to read as you’re playing. It’s hard to pay attention to the plot when there are five million enemies actively circling your team! I wish the subtitles were in a bigger font and spanned the entire duration of the bottom screen for greater accessibility.

That being said, B.ARK is an entertaining adventure for you and all your buds. Even my friends that don’t play games very often found themselves sucked into the wild gameplay. We blasted our way through all of the addicting levels, and we’ll most likely be replaying it on the hardest difficulty. If you’re looking for a new couch co-op that’s fun for your whole family (or maybe just some friends), look no further than B.ARK!

A Nintendo Switch review code for B.ARK was provided by the Publisher