REVIEW: Urban Flow (Switch)

• Released: 2020
• Played on: Switch
• Also available on: n/a – although apparently it’s to be released for PC, PS4 and XB1 at some point
• Time to get into: 5 Minutes
• Time to complete: 8 Hours
• Multiplayer: Yes, local only

Game Summary

Urban Flow is, essentially, a traffic lights game. You can change the lights at a number of junctions on each of the 100 small maps the game offers with the goal of getting a certain number of cars and other vehicles through safely. To begin with things are pretty straight forward, like just letting through the rows of cars at a T-junction one-green-light-at-a-time. By the time you get to the end however, letting cars through on one side of the map can have consequences far away. It’s this, combined an increasing number of unusual vehicles like Ambulances or even Tanks that have unique aspects, that makes the game more exciting than just red-light, green-light. There’s nothing ground breaking here, but for a light (pun intended) and enjoyable puzzler at a great price, it’s hard to go wrong.

What’s good about it?

• The best thing about Urban Flow is that it’s basic idea is really robust. Turn the light to green to let cars through, turn it to red to stop them. It’s simple and immediate, meaning the game has pick-up-and-play accessibility to all. Not that you can leave any lights on red forever but the game gives you due warning when one of them is about for force a change on you. More than just simplicity though, the red/green and change mechanics are always consistent, there’s never any doubt about your timing – get it wrong and there’s no way you can blame the game itself.
• On top of that, the learning curve is good. Early on I rarely failed to get the full 3 stars on each level but as the game introduces new aspects, like Tanks that run over anything in their path or bridges that become impassable, Urban Flow goes with you and keeps increasing the difficulty at an even rate. In the latter third of the game I did get properly stuck on 3 or 4 levels, but never to the point that I ever felt like giving up. By the end you’ll think about how much traffic you can now manage and the first few levels will seem amusingly easy!
• There’s plenty of content. Urban Flow has fully 100 levels for you to crack in it’s basic state and a 3-star system if you fancy aiming for more than just passing the level. I went for getting 3 stars on every one and once completed I had had hours of fun. After that there’s DLC for plenty more fun if you wish.
• The soundtrack is great! You’ll want to have sound on (not always essential for puzzlers) to help you manage the lights and the music that comes with it is chilled – perfectly suiting the relaxed atmosphere of the gameplay.
• I would recommend using the touchscreen on the Switch, although you can also use buttons. It’s just as responsive and thus makes the game all the more intuitive and immediate.

What’s bad about it?

• The main flaw in Urban Flow is simply that it is limited in scope. Every one of the 100 levels is, at it’s core, much the same. This focus on one idea serves the game well in some ways, but it does mean that if the game doesn’t click with you early on, it never will. Plus, after 100 levels, I was happy to complete the game and set it down. There is the DLC if you did want more, but it had become a bit repetitive to me.
• The only real frustration with Urban Flow was that once or twice in the later levels I found some hidden roads that can seem unfair. It’s just a tactic the game employs to make things harder but on a couple of occasions cars I had to let cars go through a light, only for cars to appear coming the other way down the same road at the last second. Just slightly bad level design – but to be clear: this is rare.
• It’s a little thing but I really found that Urban Flow isn’t great at telling you when you are nearing completion of a level. Concentrating on the cars and lights, there’s not always a good chance to glance up at the score and see if you are nearly done. And if you do complete it, it happens suddenly, which takes something away slightly from the achievement.
• Lastly, there’s a time-slowing mechanic. I found it totally unhelpful. Ah well.

Conclusion

I found Urban Flow to be a great game for winding down, whether that be after another more intense game or in the evening or just before bed. Sometimes games aren’t trying to be award-winning and mind-blowing – they can just be really enjoyable. Urban Flow sits beautifully in that slot and given it’s cheap price, I can recommend it to anyone.