Bob Help Them! [Switch]

From publisher No Gravity Games, Bob Help Them! is a time-based game that sees you play as the titular hero, Bob. There are NPCs that need help with different chores, and apparently you are the only one that can help. There are 35 levels consisting of a variety of tasks that must be completed, given from various NPCs that are looking for assistance, whether that be to gather fruit, chop wood, or deliver any of the other resources you can retrieve.

You’ll be given a limited amount of time to complete all tasks asked of you, which is sometimes a little tight. As each level begins, the camera will pan over each task-giver, highlighting what they’re looking for, as well as letting you see a little bit of what is nearby to them (hint – it’s usually never the thing they want!). All I can say at this point is keep in mind how many of certain items are needed! This will save you a bit of backtracking if you can remember how much wood needs to be chopped as you can do it all in one fell swoop.

Likewise, if the tasks ask for 20 gold ore, as well as 10 gold bars, it’s good to keep note of this too, as then you can focus on mining for 30 before giving the 20 to the NPC and smelting the rest, saving yourself what is sometimes crucial seconds. It’s a very straightforward game, where the controls are nice and simple to learn. You can collect resources with A and drop anything you don’t need with B. You can also chop wood or mine for ore repeatedly by holding A next to trees with axes resting against them, or rocks with pickaxes respectively. Some resources will have to be cooked or smelted before you can return them to the NPC, which can run down your time a bit, but as long as you do things in a decent order then it’s not too difficult. At the end of each round, you will be given a star rating – with three stars being the highest.

Presented in a pixel-art style, it’s okay looking, but it’s not really anything special. Bob runs around with his arms up the entire time, which I’m not sure if this was done as a joke, or to reduce the number of animations, but it’s pretty funny either way. Bob also looks like JonTron - like, it’s uncanny! - and this added a little touch of amusement, but was likely unintentional. There’s a cute dog that you can pet as part of the tasks, as well as a few different NPC ‘looks’ but overall it’s a pretty generic looking game. The soundtrack is pleasant enough, with a chirpy little tune that finds itself drilling its way into your mind over time, as it repeats.

There’s not a whole lot to the game, with the level dynamics remaining consistent throughout - sadly there’s no evolution onto new tasks to freshen things up, so it can become stale quite quickly. But in short bursts, it’s good to pass some time, so if you like relaxing task-based games, particularly ones that are easy to just pick up and put down at the drop of a hat, then you can nab Bob Help Them! for £6.99 on the Switch eShop.

In the end, we decided to give Bob Help Them! the Collecting Asylum rating of 5.5/10.

Have you played Bob Help Them! yet? What did you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!

- V x

Thank you to No Gravity Games for the Bob Help Them! Switch review code!