Riot has been looking into many different avenues to explore the lore of League of Legends. That created Riot Forge, which created single-player games like Ruined King, Mageseeker, and the recent Song of Nunu.

All those games gave an insight into the world of Runeterra with some fun gameplay. However, while Riot thought to explore the world in that way, it did not financially fit their mold. So, Riot Forge is being discontinued which leaves most people sad.

The only shining light to come out of it all is the fact that we will be getting one last Riot Forge game called Bandle City: A League of Legends Story. This is a game that will take you on a journey across Bandle City in a variety of locations and save the city from a disaster.

I had the pleasure of getting a review copy for the game and it was a joy to play through the game. So here is an overview of Bandle City before we move on to the review.

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What Sort Of Game Is Bandle City: A League of Legends Story

As mentioned, Bandle City takes you on a journey to many different locations and explore the many different isles. It is similar to the likes of Stardew Valley and games of that genre where you collect, scavenge, build, and do other activities.

The usual stuff like gathering, exploring, and fishing are prevalent while there are some new additions to fit the theme of Bandle City. There are parties, or should I say A LOT of parties.

So for those people who are into this genre of games, this is the game for you to try.

Bandle City Review

So this review will be broken down into several parts, starting with talking about the story briefly, the gameplay, and more.

The Story

In this game, everybody controls a character that is a knitter and their task is to save Bandle City from a disaster. Without going into specific details, the story takes you to different Isles to solve the various problems thrown at you while meeting some of the League of Legends characters.

The story itself is very simple and straightforward. There is not a huge amount of depth or decision-making in it. So just sit back, chill, and enjoy the game and experience what it all has to offer.

The Gameplay

As for Gameplay in Bandle City, there is an abundance of systems and activities available. Here is a breakdown of all of them.

Emotions, Orbs, Dreams and Skill Points

Any activity you do in this game gets you Emotions. These are stored in Orbs, which convert into Skill Points after you go to Sleep and Dream. Repeating the same activities earns less Emotions and this incentivizes players to do different things each time before Dreaming.

Dreaming converts Emotions into Skill Points but also progresses time. The more Orbs you have a capacity off, the more you can do each time before sleeping. There are many ways to get these.

Skill Points are used to research Skills to unlock new abilities, resources, objects, and such. All these are core resources in the game to progress in the game.

Backpack Badges

All quests in the game are related to different Badges. The Badge system has an impact all over the game such as unlocking different research trees, quests, and such.

Progress for these Badges comes through quests and activities such as Cooking. Do all of them to get the full progress of the game.

Gathering

The most simple of the mechanics of the game is gathering resources. Different Isles have unique resources and you unlock more of them as you play through the game. There are a variety of resources available to be gathered including Wool, different types of Bugs, metals, etc.

Many of the resources require time to regenerate after gathering them while others can be gathered as much as you want. Also, to gather resources, you need to unlock and use different tools. All in all, pretty straightforward.

Farming

Some resources are only gathered via farming. So, you will need to make seeds, plant them, and wait for them to grow. Rinse and repeat and get more of these fruits and veggies.

Cooking

By gathering many resources, you can use them to cook and feed the residents of an Isle. Doing that gains Emotions, Skill Points, and gaining Happiness and Togetherness for Festivals. Also, to do a Cooking event via a Food Stall, the Isle needs to have at least 4 Orders.

Completing different sets of Orders and feeding certain combinations of dishes can grant you progress on Backpack Badges.

Fishing

The Fishing Mini-Game is pretty simple as you use the many different kinds of hooks to get different types of resources. Rewards largely differ and there are many different fishing spots in the shape of horizontal portals. Explore that when you have the chance.

Crafting

There are many different kinds of workstations and such available in the game. Research unlocks all sorts of workstations, crafting, and more. Explore that during the game.

Festivals

This one uses Happiness and Togetherness to hold Festivals and Yordles Parties. Parties net you Portal Yarn and Skill Points, which allows you to teleport from Portal to Portal. It’s a lot of dancing and it’s great.

There are many many more stuff in the game and it is best to explore them.

The Cozy Feels

The game is just very cozy. You experience the light-hearted world of Bandle City and meet the great Yordles from the region like Tristana and Teemo. Lore is fit to perfection and it is just a great feeling to play the game.

My Thoughts On The Game

Bandle City: League of Legends 2023 was a joy for me to play. It has such a light-hearted way of going about the game while introducing characters in the most unique ways. The story is simple, the gameplay has an abundance of things to do.

However, as these games go, they can get repetitive and it can become a little bit of a chore. The game is open-ended enough to let you explore and do your own thing. All in all, this is a solid game and one you should give a shot.

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The game was created by Tequila Works and published by Riot Forge. Just like other Riot Forge games, this one expands the story of Freljord and follows Nunu and Willump on their adventure. For my review, the game was played on PC, and a review copy was provided by Riot.

Connected with an unbreakable bond, they journey through Freljord to find the answer to the question Nunu has. The game starts you off with the story from the get-go. Also, the more I played, the more it was evident that the story was the main focus.

While the plot was the key aspect of the game, all the other features of the game complement that really well. The game starts off with a dark undertone but then quickly goes into this playful nature of Nunu and Willump simply hanging out.

It is a genuine friendship between the last of the Yeti and a Notai child. For a good part of the game, the duo jokes, converses and plays around with one another. Frequent things the game threw at me were the hugs, the unique handshakes, snowball fights, and the constant playfulness of both Nunu and Willump.

The game becomes more and more interesting as you play it. I started to unlock collectibles that tell more about the Freljord. Notes are given alongside other tidbits in the Notebook to give the lore background for everything you come across in the game.

I also encountered some of the other champions in League of Legends, like Braum, Ornn, Lissandra, and Volibear. Each has their own motivations and personalities that Nunu and Willump encounter along the way.

Gameplay-wise, the game continues on this playful tone of Nunu and Willump traversing the Freljord. There is a lot of jumping around, climbing ledges, puzzles, collectibles, beautiful locations, musical notes, and Poros! Who does not love Poros?

There are also many combat sequences in the game that I encountered. As I progressed, I encountered different sorts of enemies that you deal with differently. The combat system is simple; it’s a two-button combo system with a finisher at the end. For the sheer simplicity of it, it works and keeps you on your toes.

However, the biggest aspects of the game are the exploration and the puzzles. The game definitely encourages you to explore, and that rewards you with collectibles. There’s a lot of traversing, climbing, sliding on Willump, running around, etc.

Other than that, the game is filled with plenty of puzzles, each requiring the smarts to complete them as new mechanics get introduced. In my experience, the puzzles require a fair bit of thinking, and they feel satisfying to complete. It is a huge gameplay loop for Song of Nunu as you complete these puzzles to progress further into the story.

To go along Nunu and Willump’s journey, they have their unique abilities. Nunu can destroy obstacles and create True Ice, while Nunu can play songs using his Svellsongur. The visuals are outstanding, and it is a joy just to sit back and look at the surroundings and just throw snowballs at Willump.

While there are a lot of positives with the game, there are some things I encountered that are interesting or not really to my liking. There is no backtracking as the game locks you out from areas you explored. The controls are strictly geared for controllers and play much smoother with the use of one.

Sometimes, the interactions can be a little fiddly as the jumps can be a little short, or you jump to a ledge, and you do not get on it. Some minor inconveniences, but those are easily avoidable.

So, in essence, the game is all about the story, and the other mechanics build up to that. It is a great game that conveys the story of Nunu and Willump while tailoring that into the realm of Freljord. All the characters have their purpose that is portrayed well, and the lore is on point.

To end this review, Song of Nunu is a worthy addition to Riot Forge’s list of games as it expands the lore of League of Legends. It’s story, and puzzles will keep players engaged with the use of simple mechanics. I would recommend you give this game a whirl if you are a fan of League of Legends and other Riot games.

Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story is set to be out on November 1, 2023, on Steam, Epic Store, and Nintendo.

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