What The Hack? A Boti: Byteland Overclocked Review

Should we be playing Boti: Byteland Overclocked on a console? It certainly feels that way with its cute ‘n crip visuals, happy-go-lucky optimism, and appeal for a younger audience who might not have the disposition to sit on a desktop with a mouse and keyboard.

It’s like the excellent Bang-on Balls: Chronicles and like a tardis: relatively contained on the outside but featuring some colossal levels in a pseudo-open-world setting on the inside. Well, to some extent.

Boti: Byteland Overclocked is a 3D platformer developed by Purple Ray Studio and published by the eclectic Untold Tales. In it, you play a data robot named Boti, who’s a bit like a Deliveroo driver, only digital and not one for small talk. Or smells like a kebab.

Boti: Byteland Overclocked Review (PC)

Boti has been summoned by their superior, Kernal, to complete some data transfers with the assistance of two helper bots, Zero and One. Where Boti hums and bleeps like a Wall-E wannabe, the two hovering bots offer a constant dialogue throughout and the first error with the game.

While you can mute the conversations, it’s excessive, with the naive and upbeat Zero and monotone, cynical One (or the other way around – I wasn’t paying attention). They’ll offer guidance but repeat the same thing, such as noting a cache is nearby or shaking off an enemy. 

The upside to this is having an idea of what to do next. Likewise, if you’re one for collecting, you’ll want to pay attention to their hints as there are many items to collect (including custom skins – yay!). Finding things in Boti: Byteland Overclocked appears to be easy, but when you reach the end of a stage, you soon realise there’s so much more to find.

Data Hoarder

On that note, Byteland is massive. I’d attempt a quick run at a stage, only to spend a good 30 minutes on it, looking for secrets or admiring the cute little setpieces. Again, to draw a comparison, Boti: Byteland Overclocked is similar to Astro’s Playroom, with its dinky bots performing a little skit, only it lacks the same Easter eggs for obvious reasons.

Returning to the Bang-On Balls: Chronicles comparison, Boti collects data that uploads to mini-hubs that unlock new paths. It’s easy to do this, but those wanting the highest rankings must find as much data as possible, smashing crates or bashing bots.

The combat in Boti: Byteland Overclocked is simple, which equates to it being effective. Boti can punch and perform a slam attack that also toggles switches. As for movement, it reminded me a little bit of Ty the Tasmanian Tiger HD, as the controls were smooth, notably the jumping and camera placement.

Byte The Hand That Feeds

Boti: Byteland Overclocked is full of puns. If you’re not a fan of dad jokes, you might get mildly irritated with the humour (one of the first notable jokes being the character Kernal, who just so happens to be in command). I thought it was quite funny, but the delivery by the helper bots spoiled some of the lines.

Though the pair were annoying, they weren’t terrible and didn’t ruin the experience. That said, nothing particularly blew me away with Boti: Byteland Overclocked. Visually, it’s very lovely, but my Steam Deck struggled, and I had to switch to the laptop. The latter is high-end, but there were often frame drops and minor technical issues.

This isn’t Astro’s Playroom, but it’s hard not to compare the two. Astro can connect with gamers early on, with its gaming history and in-jokes, and flows better. But… Boti: Byteland Overclocked holds its own, and there’s a lot of content – what with the vast levels, variety and collectables. There’s also the co-op mode, but I didn’t try this out during the review.

Verdict

Inevitably, comparisons will be drawn between this and other 3D platformers. It’s natural. But is Boti: Byteland Overclocked worthy of your pennies? I think so. Aside from a few technical aspects and the annoying companion bots, this is a fun, accomplished platformer that’ll keep you out of mischief.