Slaps and Beans 2 Nintendo Switch Review 7.5/10 "Slaps that add up to more than a hill o’ beans!" 🫱🫘 @SchiaffiFagioli #GameDev #IndieGame

I remember seeing the first Slaps and Beans come out a few years ago, and I always fancied trying it out, but it was one of the many games that unfortunately slipped through the cracks, so I certainly wasn’t going to miss this one! I’m glad I didn’t, as this is a fun blast of fisticuffs – preferably with a friend.

For those who were unaware – myself included – Bud Spencer and Terence Hill – the protagonists of the games – were popular Italian comedians back in the ‘70s who made an array of action comedies and spaghetti westerns from the late ‘60s right up to the mid-’80s., much like the various comedy duos of the ages, one is a gruffer, larger man whilst the other is a wiry, quick-witted chap. Good.

The game begins cinematically, with an amusing introduction that shows our intrepid duo floating across the open ocean in a raft, running out of food and kept alive seemingly only through a combination of bickering and occasional half-hearted jests relating to cannibalism.

Upon finally discovering dry land, they quickly put a stop to some renegades hassling a bus full of orphans, and from then on, it’s a journey across a Caribbean paradise full of gags, flailing fists, and frying pans.

Whilst the humour throughout really clicked for me, and the 70’s-tastic soundtrack was absolutely perfectly pitched as the duo moved from scrape to scrape – with occasional humourous mini-game asides to break up the fisticuffs – the swift pacing of the combat itself can get a little repetitive, and so the fact that the – quite lengthy – campaign is broken up into smaller scraps works in the games’ favour.

I often found that just as I was tired of the identical combatants and current location, the level would end before true monotony set in. The island that you move through, and the cutscenes, dialogue etc. are all backed up by crisp pixel visuals and smooth animations, honestly – the graphics are absolutely fantastic, and that soundtrack by Oliver Onions is crying out for a vinyl release.

SUMMARY

All that said, it’s a very good thing that the game has so much going for it, as the core combat is unshakably repetitive after a while, despite all the events that break it up.

This is a game that I’m having a great time with, and would happily play through again with someone else as it captures a uniquely slapstick approach to the beat-’em-up genre. It’s made me want to seek out the movies!