In Stacking, a family of Russian stacking dolls has been separated by tough economic times. The youngest doll, Charlie Blackmore, begins a heroic effort to bring his family back together. But he’s one size smaller than any other doll in the world. Game players will help Charlie, who is all too accustomed to being overlooked and dismissed – too small to be of any real consequence – discover that his size can be his greatest strength.
GenrePuzzle
Platforms ps3
DEVELOPER Double Fine Prod. | PUBLISHER Codemasters | RELEASE DATE
Stacking Reviews ps3
1up.com review
The challenge in Stacking comes from finding multiple solutions to each problem you come across. When some obstacle stands in your way (like trying to get a specific group of dolls to clear out a room or removing some pesky obstacle), finding one doll with the ability to solve your problem is simple. Finding three can be a little more trying. Even still, exhausting every possible solution and finding all the game’s unique dolls won’t add more than a couple more hours to the game. If you get stuck, the right-shoulder button brings up a glowing line to your next objective (a la Dead Space), and in the Objectives screen you can pull up several hints related to your current task without penalty.
Read Full Review
gamingexcellence.com review
Stacking is a fantastic game with some actual content, challenge (so long as you avoid the hint system) and it has a whole lot of charm. Sure there are some issues with what sort of content you get for the price you pay but let’s be honest. This is such a minor freaking quibble as to be mostly irrelevant unless you’re seriously strapped for cash. Otherwise this is a must own game that really does live up to its promise.
Read Full Review
gamingtrend.com review
Stacking takes roughly 6-7 hours to complete. On my first run through I picked up about 95% of the hi-jinks and 100% of the puzzle solutions. The best part? I loved every minute of it. Even though I have a gaming backlog of things to review, I’ll be heading back to Stacking very soon to pick up the rest of the hidden gems. Put plainly, there is nothing out there like Stacking. If you are a hardcore puzzle player, or a casual gamer willing to take a chance on something unique, you can’t go wrong. Look for Stacking to be on a great many downloadable GOTY lists.
Read Full Review
adventuregamers.com review
There’s really nothing out there that offers what Stacking does. By running with a simple idea and presenting it in a charming, delightful package, the game will have you revelling in the genius of adopting new characteristics each time you stack.
Read Full Review
spaziogames.it review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
totallygn.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
game-boyz.co.uk review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
gamestyle.com review
Stacking isn’t just relying on a clever game mechanic to see it through, it also has oodles and oodles of charm and wit. The style of the game is set like a diorama and filmed like a silent movie, there is no voice acting, so the humour and character really shines and makes the story not only easy to follow, but an utter joy too. The game also does humour really well, things such as head-butting a set number of mimes with a ‘Northern Kiss’ and taking photos of characters will always raise a smile and even a laugh.
Read Full Review
joystiq.com review
Much like Costume Quest before it, Stacking’s central gimmick works as both gameplay and metaphor. Charlie may be small, but he’s the only one that can save the day, that’s an easy message. But there’s something else going on here, a sweet vignette about a family whose bond is represented by their ability to be physically encased in one another. It’s not a traditional way of telling the story, but why would you ever want it to be?
Read Full Review
computerandvideogames.com review
The overall aesthetic perfectly encapsulates the 1920s comedy film vibe, and helps set Stacking’s handsome art style even further away from anything seen in games before. If Double Fine’s wish was to create a unique, captivating world, they’ve achieved it with aplomb.
Read Full Review
ztgd.com review
There are unique dolls all around each area and stacking into them adds them to your collection that you can view at the hub world of the train station. All the rewards you obtain are much like this. You’re basically filling out a museum of all the dolls you’ve stacked into, as well as other unlockables you will obtain through completing challenges.
Read Full Review
gamingxp.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
gamefocus.ca review
The story begins with the Blackmore family, poor and very much in debt. Dad leaves for a spanking new job that pays well and will get the family out of their dire straights. After many weeks and no word from him, the family ends up selling their belongings to make ends meet. Eventually, they have nothing left. The Baron (the big-bad in Stacking) shows up and forces the children to work off their debts. All save Charlie, the runt of the litter. Charlie’s small stature is more than made up for in determination though, so he sets off to rescue his kin.
Read Full Review
gameinformer.com review
Stacking is a bit rough around the edges, but the puzzles are clever, the humor hits the mark more than it misses, and the characters and story are delightful, leaving adventure fans with little more to ask for.
Read Full Review
ign.com review
Stacking is chock full of charm, humor, and fun puzzles. Though some of the solutions are really easy, if you avoid the hint system it’ll take some time to decipher some of the harder ones. If all you want to do is run through the story without trying other solutions, performing Hi-Jinks or collecting dolls, Stacking may not be the best $15 investment. However, it’s hard not to get sucked into this colorful world, so if you can appreciate the style of humor Stacking has to offer, you’ll enjoy this game immensely.
Read Full Review
meristation.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
xboxlive.ign.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
worthplaying.com review
Deceptively cute, strikingly subversive and creatively inspired, Stacking appeals to both the casual and hardcore audiences in a single shot. The game is short enough to play through in a single day, but all of the optional content means there is plenty to do after the credits roll. If Double Fine keeps putting out downloadable titles of this caliber, it may never have to release another disc-based game.
Read Full Review
gamingnexus.com review
The puzzles come straight out of traditional graphic adventure games (Sam & Max, Secret of Monkey Island, etc.). You’re given a problem to overcome and it’s up to you to find the correct doll for the job, use their special ability and complete the puzzle. What sets this game apart is that it rewards you for finding several solutions to the same puzzle. That means that once you’ve completed a puzzle, you can turn back around and solve it a brand new way using a different solution.
Read Full Review
strategyinformer.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
3djuegos.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
gamerevolution.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review
planetxbox360.com review
Stacking reminds us an awful lot of the vintage films from the 20’s. The music is pure ragtime-style ballads, but with a lighthearted tone so things never get too down in the dumps. There is no dialogue, but the sound samples are charming – even the farts. As for the visuals, they look great, with lots of areas to visit ripped straight out of the old days of Cannery Row and pre-World War II America. The dolls themselves look outstanding, and watching some of them move around and do their thing is a trip.
Read Full Review
guardian.co.uk review
Stacking is right up there with the likes of Braid and Limbo as an absolute must-download. Merely toddling around its world is fun, and the fact that its gameplay is thoroughly distinctive is a bonus. If you know anyone who still believes that games are uniformly violent and brain-dead, Stacking will comprehensively disabuse them of that notion.
Read Full Review
gamespot.com review
An enchanting world seamlessly combines with fun gameplay and rewarding puzzles to make Stacking a magical adventure.
Read Full Review
gamesradar.com review
Stacking’s design almost feels like atonement for the brutally obtuse puzzles of adventure games past, because the game’s parameters are so crystal clear at all times. You may occasionally get stuck on a puzzle, but it will always be because of the puzzle itself rather than because of confusion over the gameplay mechanics.
Read Full Review
giantbomb.com review
Both a well-crafted puzzle game and a good-natured send-up of antiquated industrialist politics, Stacking is one of the more satisfyingly strange downloadable games you’re likely to encounter.
Read Full Review
videogamer.com review
It harkens back to the game’s origins: Stacking rarely treks toward the outskirts of the playroom, and not as far into alternative humour territory as some Schafer fans would hope. But instead it offers a fully-formed, self-contained world of colour and quaintness, charm, and more importantly an individuality of its own. Its voice might be weaker than Schafer’s work but Stacking is one of few games with its own visual identity.
Read Full Review
gamernode.com review
Stacking strikes a wonderful balance of putting an emphasis on completion and exploration without forcing it on players. Charlie’s friend Levi the Hobo (that’s his legal, given name, I’m sure) records progress by painting murals of each completed level and displaying all of a player’s discovered dolls below. Challenges are represented by puzzles, where each solution adds another piece to the picture. This visual approach provides great motivation to return and seek out new solutions, on top of simply listing accomplishments and percentages, which Stacking also does.
Read Full Review
gaming-age.com review
it’s not quite the hit I was hoping for from Double Fine, but we’ve still got at least two more games in the pipeline from them when it comes to these downloadable ventures. I still hope that they’ll be able to top Costume Quest, but Stacking shows that the company is far from perfect. I’d generally suggest passing this up, unless you’re a Playstation Plus subscriber and received the game for free.
Read Full Review