ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove

Playing this game is equivalent to downing some orange soda and Cool Ranch Doritos while watching Rocko’s Modern Life with the Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff playing on my parents’ six-CD player. With a little more variety in objectives this could be the killer co-op game to end all co-op games, but even with the same basic goal each run, ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is one of the illest, dopest, most hella fly experiences I’ve had on my Switch. And while I know that vernacular is terribly dated, it totally works when talking about this game.

ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is the fourth game in a series that has spanned three decades and as many genres. Over ten years have passed since ToeJam & Earl III landed on the Xbox without making an impact, but a lot has changed in video games since the early 2000s. Most importantly, independently-developed games have become commercially viable, and sequels to classics don’t need to chase innovation to make fans happy. With this game, we have a return to the spirit of the 1991 Sega Genesis original, dumping the action and platforming of the sequels in favor of the first game’s roguelike r...

At one time Sega pimped ET rappers – the funky, groovy duo of ToeJam and Earl – as mascots for their Genesis console. However poor sales of the original 1991 game nixed that and that mantle fell to the decidedly more kinetic Sonic and Crash Bandicoot. Enter ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove!

ToeJam and Earl are definitely back in the groove with this remake, and this game has been welcomed by fans who backed the Kickstarter back in 2015. I certainly wanted to see a more fresh take on these characters, but the game we got will keep fans of the franchise happy while introducing a whole new generation of gamers to the series.

While the commitment HumaNature Studios made to make an actual sequel to the original ToeJam & Earl is commendable, the gameplay just feels way too dated. ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is truly the sequel fans were probably waiting for, it's just 20 years too late.

Back in the early days of the Sega Genesis, Sonic the Hedgehog wasn’t the only one who was making some noise and pulling the attention away from the powerhouse that was Nintendo.

ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is a hard sell. If you loved the originals, then there might be enough here to spirit you back to the days of the Mega Drive, but without knowing the source material, you are left with a good looking but fairly generic walkabout game. Don’t get me wrong, the game is loaded with charm in its characters, soundtrack and setting, but when you boil it down to its basics, it’s quite standard and retains that old game difficulty feel which can get a little repetitive. It’s one of those ‘you had to be there’ experiences which make this look like a by-the-numbers rogue...

Back with another one of those block-rockin' beats.

ToeJam and Earl may have gained cult status for their past escapades, but unless you’re a hardcore fan of the series, the magic doesn’t quite carry over to the 21st century. ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is initially charming thanks to how offbeat it is, but it soon wears thin when you realise how barebones the gameplay is.

ToeJam & Earl: Back in he Groove is a straightfroward game that really struggles to find any form of relevance beyond its nostalgia factor.

Otherwise, this is really hard to recommend. The music, which really should have been the focus, is tinny ultra-basic beats, sounding like midi files in their simplicity. There’s no attempt at livening it up with real instruments, and the game’s Guitar Hero-style button-along sequences are insultingly rudimentary. Crikey, I just kept thinking of so many different ways this could have been a much more ambitious take on a cheerful anachronism from an ancient 16-bit era. Sadly, I appear to have been the only one.

There were moments where it felt like I was playing the same game that came out when I was 11. But the look was just a bit more lavish, and the funky bass line was arranged just differently enough. Back in the Groove is the perfect mix of polish and nostalgia, and one that I can’t wait to play through again.