What The Critics Are Saying About Nuts

Developed by Joon Van Hove, Nuts puts players in the shoes of a research assistant tasked with discovering the location of the local squirrels' nest. That task becomes increasingly daunting as strange things happen, and players must rethink their camera setup, equipment, and strategy for tracking the sneaky squirrels. 

Described as a "single-player surveillance mystery," Nuts promises unusual gameplay and a deeply held secret to help motivate players as they navigate through the plot. Polygon listed Nuts as one of its most anticipated games of 2020, and now, in 2021, it's finally getting released on PC, Mac and Nintendo Switch. The title has already racked up awards and nominations, leaving fans to eagerly await it all the more.

Henry Stenhouse of All Gamers covered Nuts early in its development at the EGX 2019 Leftfield showcase. Stenhouse praised Nuts for its inventive color palette and gameplay, positing, "The general process is highly satisfying, but it's thanks to the neon art style that Nuts really comes to life." The action of positioning and repositioning a series of cameras each night might sound monotonous, but successfully capturing squirrels on film reportedly elicits surprising feelings of joy about a job well done. What else did critics have to say about Nuts?

Jupiter Hadley of Indie Games Plus also discussed the repetitiveness of setting up cameras. Hadley encountered an early version of Nuts as well, and she explained that she "couldn't shake the feeling that something more was going to happen." The growing mystery of Nuts serves as the driving force behind the game. The official description of Nuts notes that as the game progresses, things "get weirder and weirder," suggesting that the game holds a secret that earlier versions may not have fully included.

Heather Alexandra at Kotaku encouraged gamers to pick up Nuts and give it a try. "The process feels like a genuine hunt and there's a sly sense of satisfaction that comes getting closer to victory," Alexandra explained. Though Alexandra also reviewed an early version of Nuts, the observations stand, as gameplay remains relatively unchanged.

In the IGN review for the full version of Nuts, Simon Cardy admitted "Although I enjoyed the flow of methodical and relatively unchallenging puzzles, by its final chapter I was left wanting more variation." Cardy's criticism did not overshadow their enjoyment of Nuts, and they dubbed it a "relaxing puzzle adventure with an intriguing mystery inside its shell."

Nuts is available now on Apple Arcade and launches on Steam and Nintendo Switch Feb. 4, 2021. Much like Firewatch and other atmospheric puzzle games, Nuts might just win a spot amongst the indie greats.