Review Roach 3/5 · Sep 8, 2025
Swing Me Right Round
Another retro game I sucked so bad at, I had to watch a longplay. I couldn't even make it past the first level!
This is a puzzle game known as Clu Clu Land in the West and Kuru Kuru in Japan, the onomatopoeia for something going "around and around" which is exactly what you do in this game.
The stages …
Another retro game I sucked so bad at, I had to watch a longplay. I couldn't even make it past the first level!
This is a puzzle game known as Clu Clu Land in the West and Kuru Kuru in Japan, the onomatopoeia for something going "around and around" which is exactly what you do in this game.
The stages feature an enclosed space filled with posts. You move through the posts to find hidden coins that are revealed when you pass through them. When you want to change course, you latch onto a post and swing yourself around and let go when you're facing the direction you want to travel. And this is where I kept messing up. I couldn't properly orientate myself, got confused, and would get gobbled up by the enemies. I think it's mostly a me problem as opposed to the controls being a problem. So instead of practicing, I just opted to watch a pro play it instead. And they made it look so easy!
The story must be included in the manual because I'm reading about the characters and plot and none of that is portrayed in the game itself. The player is a balloonfish named Bubbles (or Gloopy in Japan) who is searching for all the golden ingots. The enemies are sea urchins called Unira and they've stolen all the treasures from the underwater kingdom. Your job as the heroine is reclaiming the golden ingots in each stage, which also feature black holes, as if the sea wasn't scary enough.
Even though I didn't play much of this game, I think it's a solid puzzler if you can master its movements. It's satisfying watching the golden ingots be unveiled as they are usually arranged in a fun shape.
