Exclusive Preview: Garfield — Escape From Monday Is A Delicious Treat For Platforming Fans

The platformer genre used to be a definitive approach to mainstream gaming. Early successes like Mario and Sonic shaped generations of console players, while the transition to 3D opened the door for plenty of new approaches and characters. While the genre gradually fell out of favor over time, it’s remained an ideal style of gameplay to introduce younger audiences (and entertain those who are young at heart) to the vast potential worlds of gaming. The genre has been experiencing a fun resurgence lately, with the likes of Bubsy and Spyro getting new adventures. Another upcoming platformer is bringing back someone who is very familiar with the genre – and they’re having a lot of fun with it.

Developed by Microids, Garfield — Escape From Monday is a goofy and colorful platformer that knows exactly what it’s doing. ComicBook got the chance to step into the role of the tired tabby for this exclusive preview, discovering platforming worlds made of whimsy and undercut by Garfield’s trademark snark. Simple by design and quickly entertaining for platforming fans of any age, Garfield — Escape From Monday is a fun new entry in a genre that’s been getting a fun revitalization lately.

Garfield — Escape From Monday Is Bigger Than Life

The little taste of Garfield — Escape From Monday that we got to play as a preview highlights the strong underlying platforming mechanics. The game is a throwback in every way imaginable, even indulging in the kind of plot line previous generations of platformers used. After falling into a deep sleep– caused by Jon making his beloved lasagna with spinach, courtesy of Chef Monday’s recipe – Garfield finds himself lost in a colorful dream world that needs to be navigated if he wants any chance of waking up. From the get-go, the game captures the spirit of the grumpy feline, with his deadpan dialogue and snark recalling the kind of attitude that initially distinguished characters like Sonic from the competition.

The food-themed landscapes make for goofy levels players can explore to their heart’s content, with clear paths giving way to broad worlds. This extends to the power-ups that turn Garfield into a cowboy or give him a surfboard, the allies like Odie who can help out, or foes like Nermal waiting around the corner for a chance to bring Garfield down. Loading over all of it is Chef Monday, whose big performance and presentation contrast heavily against the droll Garfield. As a gaming adaptation of the character and his supporting cast, Garfield — Escape From Monday does a great job of recreating the character’s personality and his world, all bolstered by colorful worldbuilding that makes for an ideal platforming layout.

Have An Appetite For Platformers? Try Garfield’s New Game

Garfield — Escape From Monday is designed with a lot of the fundamentals of the platforming genre, delivering a quick and effective experience. As players roam Garfield’s dreamscape, they’re confronted with some classic platforming adventuring – hop across platforms, wall jump to reach new heights, and hop onto strange little enemies to defeat them. It all has a very Super Mario 64 vibe, especially when players discover lasagna and use it to advance further into the dream world.

The gameplay is fairly basic by nature and easy to pick up for the younger players the characters and tone are aiming for. The controls are tight enough to make Garfield’s hopping feel rewarding, although the demo made available for the purposes of this preview only teased how tricky the game can get. Set to launch with over forty levels across three distinct worlds, there’s plenty of space for Garfield’s adventure to develop some big challenges. The actual gameplay of Garfield – Escape from Monday is basic by design, meant to allow players to hit the ground running and explore the culinary landscapes with ease. The levels are surprisingly vast and have a lot of little challenges and power-ups to discover.

Experienced platformers will know what they’re doing within a minute of loading up the game, but it also provides simple enough mechanics that younger, new players will also easily adapt. As a seasoned platformer player, there’s an almost instant familiarity to the gameplay that is actually pretty comforting. Much like how lasagna could be called the ultimate comfort food, platforming is a cozy (and occasionally challenging) genre that fits the character’s spirit well. It’s ultimately all in service of a throwback experience that will feed the appetite of any players who are looking for a colorful new platformer to add to the library. The preview was brief and delightful, with levels full of colorful challenge and vivid visuals. If the rest of the game can match that level of creativity and artistry, then Garfield – Escape from Monday might be the best showcase for the famous feline in gaming in years.

Garfield — Escape From Monday is scheduled to launch on September 24 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X.