It seems like, in the 21st century, everything is a simulation. No, I’m not one of those fruitcakes who thinks we’re living in the Matrix – I mean that game devs are turning literally everything into a simulation. There’s a few staples from a bygone era that are still going strong – flight sims, city builders and fishing games– but 2025 is a whole new landscape in simulators. If there was ever a mundane job you’ve always wanted to try don’t worry! There’s a game for that now. These days you can pick up a controller and be a farmer, a cleaner or a retail employee – right from the comfort of your own home. I shouldn’t have been surprised then, when I saw Mudborne on Steam, advertised as a ‘frog simulator’. Tickled by the name and intrigued by the concept, I was keen to get stuck in.
For the ten anoraks still reading who can’t wait to hear about how the controls change as you grow from a tadpole to a fully grown amphibian, or about the hyper-realistic graphics and fly catching mechanics, I’m sorry to disappoint you – Mudborne isn’t really a frog simulator at all – it’s actually a cozy adventure puzzle game, and a fun one at that.
As the story goes, you’ve been summoned by some greater power and charged with the task of restoring the population of frogs to the world following some natural disaster. As one of the last sentient frogs left, you’ll wander the once vibrant swampland, uncovering interesting diary entries from past scientists and put their extraordinary tools to good use.
The core mechanic of Mudborne revolves around frog genealogy and it’s incredibly well put together. There are mysterious gateways and mechanisms scattered across the world, each requiring a specific set of genetic keys to unlock – it’s down to you to breed the right collection of frogs and place them on the mechanisms to get them working again. But ‘breeding the right frogs’ is massively oversimplifying what’s required, as changing a frog’s genetic code is a tricky affair!
Frogs have seven different genetic traits which make up a stat line to show the dominance or recessiveness of each trait. The goal is to accentuate or diminish each one as part of the breeding process to create frogs that meet the prerequisite characteristics to open those pesky gates. Present the right lil’ guy and you’ll be blessed with some lovely lights and chimes and the gateway will open. Understanding how to manipulate these genetic codes is the crux to navigating the game, and the prerequisites become harder to achieve as you progress.
So, how exactly do you go about breeding frogs? Well, when a mummy frog and a daddy frog love each other very much they… Wait, never mind, maybe you’re not ready for that talk just yet!
Your main tools in manipulating frog genetics are mushrooms and a material called ‘magic mud’, which all frogs need to create their spawn. There are tonnes of different mushrooms in the game, and each one impacts frog statistics differently. You have to combine these fungi in such a way that you’re altering the right statistics in the right amounts to create a breed with the traits you want. Of course, it would be too easy if there was just a series of mushrooms that affect each individual trait. Oftentimes you’ll find that ‘shrooms which enhance a specific trait will also impact another one that you need to remain untouched, and that’s where the puzzle comes in. You constantly need to find the different fungi to offset one another so that the final result only makes the changes you need.
Frogs born with some particularly extreme traits even gain special abilities, and you’ll need to utilise these to complete the game. Examples include especially large frogs who can hold down buttons, or those who absorb moisture from the surrounding area. There’s lots of fun ideas that are excellently utilised and discovering these skills (and their applications) adds an impressive layer of adventuring to a game that effectively has a maths mechanic at its core.
You receive an encyclopaedia early on in the game, which offers background about the many different breeds available, and hints on what genetic make up you’ll need to breed them. Restoring all the different hoppers needed to complete the book is a real challenge, but it’s wonderfully fun to mad scientist and incredibly rewarding when you succeed.
But just when you thought you knew everything you needed to become a certified frog breeder, things get more complicated. For example, finding some of the more exotic mushrooms can be particularly difficult, as each fungus needs a specific biome and set of conditions and in order to grow. Additionally, you’ll have to keep an eye on your frog’s lineage over time, as certain gates require you to make significant genetic changes to a breed within a limited number of generations.
The layers of complexity folded into Mudborne is impressive and makes for a puzzle game that’s incredibly satisfying. I do think that the tutorials are a little hit-and-miss though, sometimes making core mechanics a little tough to get your head around, especially early on. I found myself rather perplexed when new elements were added in, but in truth, the game best explains itself in a “try and see” fashion. By persevering and breeding frogs in a trial-and-error style, eventually everything falls into place in your brain, and you’ll fall in love with it as a premise.
On top of all the puzzleful breeding mechanics, there’s also plenty of cozy crafting to enjoy, for those of you who like that kind of thing. There’s all manner of shops for you to patronise, and each owner will let you trade gubbins you’ve found on your way for bits of furniture to spruce up your cabin and to house your proudest little froggies. I’m not a cozy e-decor kind of guy, so I didn’t get a lot from this aspect of the game, but I definitely think that the options available will appeal to the Animal Crossing x Stardew Valley contingent rather nicely.
One grumble I had (which may be down to me not playing a lot of these kinds of games); I found the sheer number of menus I had to navigate a bit of a pain. That was especially true in the earlier version of Mudborne that I played (where there were bugs that had menus misbehaving in all manner of ways), but I’m pleased to report that all my biggest gripes have long since been patched out. If you’re going to play Mudborne, I would recommend doing so with a mouse and keyboard , since navigating all those menus with a controller is passable but not especially enjoyable.
It’s impressive that I’ve spent this long ribbetting about the mechanics that I haven’t even mentioned the visuals or the soundtrack yet, both of which I enjoyed thoroughly.
Mudborne is delivered with a retro pixel art style, leaning more towards simplicity than the highly polished look that’s favoured in so many HD2D games just lately. I think the art style is a charming throwback to a time when games worried more about capturing your imagination than simulating reality, and in that it succeeds extremely well. (I cannot let this review end without mentioning the armies of teeny tiny froglets that begin to fill the world as your repopulation efforts get underway – the colourful little fellas are absolutely adorable and brought me an unreasonable amount of joy!)
The soundscape for Mudborne might be one of the most relaxing I’ve ever experienced, with soothing synth chimes and bells rippling out beneath the chorus of frog chirps. Never before have I ever wished to inhabit a swamp, but if it’s as chill as this OST makes it sound, I could easily be tempted. A lot of the tracks have since made their way onto my nighttime playlist and really help to soothe me off to sleep (though they’re not quite the same without all the froggy ribbets to go alongside).
Mudborne is a niche, fun puzzle adventure that succeeds in so many areas. It boasts a deep and well thought out core mechanic that makes breeding and rearing frogs genuinely enjoyable, and offers a cozy sense of exploration that coalesces into a very enjoyable game. The mechanics demand a reliance on a lot of menus and submenus which can get a little fiddly, but the chill soundtrack will easily soothe any of those stresses out of you as you play. Mudborne is a thoroughly unique premise that’s just patiently waiting for more players to hop into.
Recommendation Score
In the interest of full disclosure, VGamingNews was provided with a copy of the game in order to conduct this review.
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