Woolfe: The Red Hood Diaries Review

By Mike de Leon Posted on April 9, 2015

The story of Woolfe: The Red Hood Diaries is loosely based on the classic fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood. In this version of the story, the protagonist is not the timid, flower collecting girl we all knew growing up, but she is instead an axe wielding brawler. She is on a quest for information about her family and the unfortunate events befallen them. Her quest leads her through deep, dark subterranean tunnels, fighting mechanical robots on the city streets of Ulrica, to jumping floating rocks in an enchanted forest. All paths lead to the inevitable confrontation with BB Woolfe.

The game is very short, but that does not mean it is not an enjoyable and challenging experience. The studio was able to maximize the 2.5D environment to add depth and complexity to the puzzle elements in the game. This intricacy is really prominent in the "Enchanted Forest Chapter," where jumping on floating rocks has to be timed and directed properly to avoid falling to your demise. Some of the obstacles were so complicated that I was thankful for the abundant checkpoints. You'll find these as picnic baskets, scattered throughout the world.

It was enjoyable to see Little Red Riding Hood hack and slash enemies to pieces, but the combat in the game was a bit cumbersome. There were times I felt the hit detection was off; especially when I thought I was attacking giant rats, but ended up swinging at the ground like a crazed lunatic. The fighting sequences with the Nutcracker soldiers was also tedious to say the least. Precise dodging is paramount, but I had a hard time determining if they were about to attack and if so, whether I was within their range. When possible, I would simply run past enemies to avoid the burden of engaging them.

Much like most epic summer blockbuster movies, the game is split into two stand alone volumes. The first being, of course, Woolfe - The Red Hood Diaries, although the original intention was to release both volumes as a single product. Bearing this in mind, the game currently only lasts around a couple hours, and is priced accordingly at $9.99. I won't go into too much detail on the final chapter in the game, but it felt rushed and disconnected from the rest of the game. As you might expect, you'll have a showdown with BB Woolfe, while Granny makes a surprise appearance that should make you smile. I do hope that the answers for all my questions regarding the narrative will be found in the next volume.

Simply Put

I had a good time playing this short game. The developers were successful in bringing players into a fairy tale world with a modern twist: a world where Little Red Riding Hood is an axe wielding badass and the big bad wolf has super powers and runs an evil corporation. The art style used in the game is beautiful and the puzzles were challenging enough to keep me engaged. However, the game could have benefited have a deeper combat system and better boss fights.