If nothing else, Maneater is unique, a short but sweet action RPG where players take control of a bloodthirsty shark with an eye on revenge against the human race. Starting off as a newborn, the shark protagonist develops new abilities as she eats her prey and uncovers abandoned boxes of genetic material. Her moveset extends throughout the game to include elemental mutations and other fantastical perks. Developer Blindside Interactive and publisher Tripwire Interactive now bring the terror to Nintendo Switch, offering a slightly downgraded experience that still feels faithful to the version of Maneater released on console and PC last year.
As far as the gameplay and story are concerned, nothing has changed about Maneater on Nintendo Switch. Aside from patches and bug fixes, this is the same experience that released last year on other platforms. While it’s initially a blast to swim through the various regions of the bayou and chomp through fish and tourists alike, the missions become repetitive in a hurry. Not only that, but the encounters with bigger enemies can be a test of patience thanks to combat where button mashing is usually the best way forward. For those who enjoy running around the world of older Grand Theft Auto games without actually engaging with the story, there’s probably a lot of fun to be had with Maneater, but the full product never fully comes together as a complete experience.
It’s also hard to fully recommend Maneater as a game to take on the go on Nintendo Switch. This port of the game is certainly playable and a fine way to play through the game and hopefully jump right into the upcoming conspiracy-themed DLC expansion this summer. However, there are some glaring issues that make this version the last one to pick for anyone who has access to other consoles or a decent PC.
The most prominent limitation stems from the simple fact that the majority of Maneater takes place underwater. Blindside Interactive differentiates each region in their game by changing up the composition of the waterways. The initial beachside area in the tutorial is blue and clear while the first real playable section takes place in a dirty yellow swamp. The Switch version severely hampers the view distance underwater, applying an underwater PS1-era fog effect that makes it difficult to spot collectibles and gain a sense of direction. What is an artistically sound visual differentiator in other versions becomes a gameplay limitation here.
The other noticeable limitation on Switch comes in the rare instances where Maneater‘s evolving apex predator has to traverse land. While Maneater on Switch just scales back most of the underwater scenery in the game, the foliage in land sections can transform from models to mere textures in certain spots. The game runs at a reduced frame rate on Nintendo’s hardware too, adding to the feeling of playing a PlayStation 1 version of a native PlayStation 2 game.
Overall, while it’s always impressive to play a fully-fledged open-world adventure on the go on Switch, Maneater is at its best played elsewhere. With a limited view underwater and reduced visual fidelity, the already repetitive game goes from just above mediocre to downright bad in spots, especially when the sacrifices to port it onto Switch affect the player’s ability to navigate the world. Anyone who owns only a Switch and feels compelled to play through an RPG as a highly customizable shark will still find some fun here, but it’s a lesser experience for a game that’s already coasting on a great gimmick and not much else.
Maneater releases on Nintendo Switch today, May 25, 2021. Maneater is also available on PS4, PS5 (via backwards compatability), Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S (via backwards compatibility), and PC. Screen Rant was provided with a Switch digital download code for the purpose of this review.
