Nintendo systems have been graced by a wide variety of video game genres, from the increasingly common platformer to puzzle games and about every type of sports imagineable, but if one underrated genre was chosen from Nintendo's library it might just be the category of simulation mixed with management and expansion. Quite an odd genre, however, A World of Keflings manages to make the idea work, and joins the likes of the Pikmin series and Little King's Story near the top of the Nintendo library.

Essentially, A World of Keflings plays nearly like Pikmin or Little King's Story, though manages to do so in its own unique way. You take control of a giant, and giant in the towering over the trees and hills sense of the word, who just so happens to be a human representation of your Mii. Across the main story your Mii will help the intertwined lands of Ice, Forest and Sand to build their own societies, all while playing along to a few simple yet silly story plots.


By helping them, we mean practically guiding your simple minded workers through every step of the process of construction and harvesting. While this sounds like a daunting task, A World of Keflings manages to make the process as simple as possible, while leaving plenty of room for deeper mechanics to develop throughout the game. Each Kefling will do exactly as you instruct, from chopping down trees, to carrying the wood to a saw mill, or even carrying that cut wood to a woodwork shop across the map. Each Kelfing can be assigned tasks by picking them up and dropping them in the vicinity of their new job. If they are carrying supplies, simply drop them a second time on the intended destination.

Keflings will work indefinitely on their tasks, allowing you to continually progress without having to babysit them. While working they will also level up in their respective category of work, providing more efficient output at a quicker rate. As they build up a base of supplies, you can then use the pieces to build parts for new buildings, provided you have obtained the necessary blueprints first. Each new building offers something to make it worth your trouble, from new Kelfings to new supplies or even a school to educate your workers to create advanced products.

A World of Keflings creates a wonderful feeling that everything you do helps you to progress, something rarely found in games today. And as you do whatever you like, you'll eventually end up beating the game by creating three full worlds arranged however you see fit. While the story isn't very long in the main portion of the game, there are three additional worlds for you to help out, which add a significant amount of longevity to A World of Keflings.


As far as the gameplay goes, it is almost all highly enjoyable, from start to finish. It is worth mentioning however, that there are occasionally bugs and glitches in the game, one of which caused us to reach an impasse and begin our main story anew. While seemingly annoying, we feel it speaks strongly to the game that we had an even more enjoyable playthrough that second time, regardless of doing the exact same tasks again.

As for the look of A World of Keflings, while the graphics more than do the job they need to and look crisp on the TV screen, as does the off screen map, and the background music perfectly fits the theme of town building with its peaceful ambiance flowing and changing with the seasons of the game. The graphics themselves recieved a nice upgrade from the original game's release, making the Wii U version arguably the best one to own.


If you enjoy building, simulation games or the idea of managing a group of subjects to do your every bidding, then A World of Keflings is a perfect fit for you. Building towns and communities with the Gamepad makes things easier than ever before in the series, and the extra maps included manage to really flesh out this building sim. A World of Keflings is the kind of game that once you pick up, you become addicted to the core gameplay until you finish, and even with the occasional glitches is one of the more unique and enjoyable ways to spend your time on the Wii U.


Review copy provided by: NinjaBee Studios