Adorable Adventures Preview: Really Is So Cute!

I was browsing through the Steam demos, as I often do, and a new title popped up: Adorable Adventures. This caught my eye, especially the cute-looking boar on the thumbnail image. Then I heard that it was getting positive feedback from players, so I decided to download the demo and give it a try. Not only was playing the baby boar as cute as you can expect it to be, but it felt like I’d stepped into one of those wonderful nature documentaries. 

Adorable Adventures is exactly as the title describes; for cozy, animal-loving fans, this is something not to be missed.

Adorable Adventures is now available as a free demo on Steam. There is currently no release date set for the full game.

Story – Reuniting the Family

The general premise of Adorable Adventures – at least when the full game comes out – is that a forest fire has recently separated a family of boars. You assume the role of one of the baby boars, given the appropriately adorable name of Boris, as he attempts to reunite with his family. He must use his scent of smell to navigate the world and find his family members.

For the demo, you don’t get to see much of the story, but this is fine. The whole purpose is to acquaint you with the gameplay and a cute baby boar trying to find his way around the world. You do get reunited with one of Boris’s siblings (Fred, I believe the name was), but as you only play one stage of Adorable Adventures, you don’t get to see the rest of the family. 

From playing the demo, you’ll quickly become involved in Boris and wish to find out whether he does in fact reunite with his family. Although you get plenty to do and explore in the demo, it feels like you only play a short portion of what will eventually be the full game.

Gameplay – The Day in the Life of a Baby Boar

Adorable Adventures allows you to play as the cutest little baby boar across a vast highland setting that is just crying out to be explored. In this fabulously-designed playground, you can try out the life of Boris by discovering his scent ability and coming across the odd optional challenge to get a real taste of what this game is about.

Getting in Control

The first thing we should discuss before moving onto the actual gameplay is the controls of Adorable Adventures. Before launching the game, it suggested that I pair up a controller to make playing the game easier. Lots of games on PC do this. Unfortunately, I didn’t have much luck pairing up my PlayStation controller to my PC, so I had to continue with the keyboard and mouse controls. I should note that this isn’t the fault of Adorable Adventures at all, but it did mean I was unable to play with a controller, which might had made things easier for me.

I should also add that you can still play Adorable Adventures perfectly fine without the need for a controller. The controls might feel a bit awkward, depending on your own personal experience and preference with gaming, but otherwise it’s not at all unplayable.

You don’t need a controller to play, but it is meant to be easier.

Oink, Oink, Sniff, Sniff – What’s That?

One of the key game mechanics in Adorable Adventures is the ability to detect and track scents. With the push of a button, the wafts of a scent, or several different scents, linger in the air in different colors. Sometimes the smell is unidentified, but if you identify a smell the first time, it will tell you what it is.

Tracking scents is important for locating items or completing tasks. However, with such a strong sense of smell, it’s easy for Boris to get distracted. While you’re following the trail of a particular scent, another scent can pull your attention away. To stop other smells from diverting you away from your goal, you must identify that smell a certain number of times. Only then you can remove the scent from Boris’ senses. However, you can toggle it back on anytime if you change your mind. 

It’s quite a lot of fun traipsing around the world, following different scents. Even in the demo there’s plenty that Boris can discover. You do have to note that if you’re out of range of a scent trail, all scents vanish after a few seconds. You can make Boris smell again, but the trail may be slightly different. Also, from the list of scents in the journal, not every scent is available at once. Only the nearest scents show up, so if you’re looking to track something specific and it’s not listed, you may have to move around a bit until you do find it.

Boris can pick up lots of smells to help you complete tasks or locate items or characters.

Plenty to See and Do

Boris doesn’t spend all his time sniffing around, picking up smells. You can make plenty of discoveries in the highlands of Adorable Adventures. You can throw away old tin cans into a trash bin, take photos of a specific shot with a camera you can find, and take part in races.

I decided to skip the races as I ideally needed to use a controller for something like that. However, I did enjoy trying to take photos. Although this was challenging, it was in a good way. You have to set the shot up in just the right spot and the photo will take for you.

With the different activities available, there was plenty to keep you busy in the demo of Adorable Adventures.

The demo has plenty for you to be getting on with to get a good feel for the game.

Graphics & Audio – Just Perfect

The graphics and audio really shine in Adorable Adventures. The game is so hyper realistic, it’s breathtaking. Everything feels so real, leaping out of the screen. Running through dandelions and watching all the seeds flying in your wake was just an incredible sight. Also, I cannot go without mentioning just how adorable Boris the boar is. He really is so cute!

It’s not just the graphics that makes Boris adorable, but the sound effects, too. It’s just so precious listening to those cute little grunts and oinks. It never gets tiresome.

The music is as equally stunning. It’s the type of music you’re likely to hear watching a nature documentary, making you feel like you’re in one, this time starring as the wild animals themselves. It’s that final magical touch to this amazing experience.