Kukoos: Lost Pets is a 3D platformer in which you play as a species called Kukoos. These island-dwelling creatures look like cute little gorillas, which fits the vibe of this fun and goofy game very well.
The game starts with a cutscene of the island celebrating “Pet Day,” which is a day where the inhabitants embrace their pets and hold competitions. During this celebration however, the pets’ collars go rogue, causing them all to turn evil and run away. Gramma, a sort of leader-figure of the island, asks you to enter a “fwendly” door which will lead you to different universes where the pets are hidden. Your job is to enter these universes and save the pets by removing their collars.
There are a lot of different universes in this game, each with multiple levels that have a theme throughout the universe. Also within those universes is a different pet that helps you with each level, based on the theme. For example, the first universe you enter is like a sort of cave system, which is very dark. The pet that helps you is a little flying orb that can light up spaces so you can see where you’re going.
In each level are rogue pets that will attack you. You can rescue them from their collar by either jumping on them or dashing into them. You have to save a certain amount of pets each level to earn a star. If you collect enough coins and fwendly plants you get three stars. Fwendly plants are hidden in each level. There are usually around four of them, and they are used to create fwendly potions which allow you to enter new fwendly doors. The specific gameplay of Kukoos: Lost Pets is a 3D platformer, in which you can run around, jump, and dash to complete the obstacles. There are also some puzzles within the game, and a boss at the end of each universe.
The controls are fairly easy, and you are given a tutorial of how to play at the start of the game. The only interface trouble I had was when my game quit unexpectedly. Thankfully, the game autosaves when you finish a level, so I was able to pick up where I left off.
I also noticed some animation glitches, but the game does have a lot going on visually. There are certain cutscenes where there are a lot of pets, Kukoos, and scenery animations, which can cause the camera to move in a not-so-smooth way. Because of how cool and fun everything looked, however, it never seemed to bother me. I didn’t notice an animation problem during gameplay.
The cutscenes also have voice actors playing the Kukoos, and I thought they did a really good job. The music was also fun, and due to the ever changing levels and universes, the game never gets boring.
Kukoos: Lost Pets is a game that anyone can play; it’s not too challenging, and it has a cute and friendly vibe. The different pets you save and the different universes you enter allow the game to flow easily. This game could take around 3 hours to play, and even after that you can replay levels to try and get three stars if you didn’t before. The story is fun, as are the gameplay and visuals.
