The most creative game I've played this year also rips straight from classic 3D platformers, and it's awesome

Screenshot of Ruffy and the Riverside running on Xbox Series X.

There is nothing new under the sun. Whether learned from a Shakespearan sonnet or the Holy Bible, that simple bit of wisdom is all too easy to apply to almost any medium of modern art.

As time goes on, it becomes increasingly difficult to convince oneself that it’s even possible to create something unique anymore — but that’s simply not the case. Case in point: Ruffy and the Riverside, one of the most creative video games of the year.

Ruffy and the Riverside is so obviously inspired by classic 3D platforming games it’s actually nostalgic, but modern twists and one beautifully simple but brilliant gameplay mechanic has made this one of my favorite 2025 games. Let me tell you why.

Don't like what you see? Just SWAP it out

You can actually create your own textures for things, like rivers. It looks wild. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Ruffy isn't the only one with the power to change the world around him. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Even the most puzzle-y puzzles are inherently simple, but they're still engaging. (Image credit: Windows Central)

These fuzz balls are one of many kinds of collectibles in Ruffy and the Riverside. (Image credit: Windows Central)

It's not a large map, but there's still so much to see. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Ruffy and the Riverside takes a lot of notes from legendary classics, including a colorful and cartoonish art style, a paradoxically low-stakes plot that threatens the destruction of the entire world, and a plucky protagonist that isn't certain he should be at the center of all this attention.

Gameplay is also nostalgic, with straightforward platforming, basic combat against a handful of very punchable enemies, a vast assortment of simple puzzles, and all the mysteriously floating golden coins you can pick up.

The ground, walls, rivers and oceans, plants, objects, even animals — it can all be altered by SWAP.

What sets Ruffy and the Riverside apart is the SWAP, a unique skill that Ruffy learned during his time working at his father's Painting Workshop. For all intents and purposes, the SWAP allows Ruffy to manipulate reality by swapping materials, colors, and patterns of almost anything in the world.

Need to deal with an angry shark? Simply turn its watery abode into scorching lava. Need to smash a stone pillar? Just convert it into fragile wood. Perhaps an ancient guardian artifact has been horrifically defaced? Seek out its sacred symbols elsewhere and restore them.

The SWAP is, at its core, incredibly simple — scan one thing, and then apply it to something else. It takes mere moments to completely alter the world around you, and the SWAP is at the center of every puzzle and obstacle in Ruffy and the Riverside.

This game never gets too complicated, and that's part of the magic.

A relaxing, totally-unserious adventure through Riverside

Your bee best friend is by your side the entire time. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Your goal? To recover the sacred letters that protect the World Core, or something. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Ruffy and the Riverside shakes up the gameplay formula with fun little sections like this. (Image credit: Windows Central)

There was a plane, for some reason. (Image credit: Windows Central)

The plane definitely didn't blow up. Probably. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Simple textures or not, this game is beautiful. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Ruffy is almost a pro at climbing ladders. (Image credit: Windows Central)

These puzzle sections are supposedly underground. That is clearly a sky. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Of course you can grind rails on hay bales. (Image credit: Windows Central)

Ruffy and the Riverside doesn't take itself too seriously. The characters, dialogue, and story are all riddled with dumb, wholesome jokes, and playing the game will rarely make you think too hard.

This game's world is surprisingly dense, though, packed with tiny puzzles and challenges. There's a lot to discover and collect in Ruffy and the Riverside, and it's here the game's brilliance truly stands out.

Puzzles in Ruffy and the Riverside can be broken down into two parts: recognizing there's a puzzle to solve at all, and realizing what the solution is. Both parts tend to lean toward "obvious" and "easy," but the entire game embracing simplicity actually introduces a degree of challenge.

Ruffy and the Riverside is simple, and that's exactly what makes it brilliant.

The SWAP mechanic that powers this 3D platforming game allows you to interact with practically everything. You'll quickly understand how to use this powerful tool to solve most puzzles in moments, but you'll also inevitably run into puzzles where you simply don't see the obvious. Unlike most puzzle games, overthinking is absolutely the enemy here.

It's an approach that makes Ruffy and the Riverside fun for gamers of all ages. In fact, one puzzle that stumped me at first was solved by my seven-year-old daughter in seconds, because she thought of a brand-new (but obvious in hindsight) way to use the SWAP that simply hadn't occurred to me — the puzzle wasn't hard, I was just thinking too much about it.

Ruffy and the Riverside isn't challenging your intelligence, it's inviting your creativity. It's a relaxing, lighthearted, and bright adventure that clearly draws heavy inspiration from all our favorite platforming classics, but with a delightfully basic twist that makes it one of the most unique video games I've played in 2025.

If you want to try it for yourself, Ruffy and the Riverside is now available across Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch for just $20.