Get ready to explore the streets of your favorite neighborhood in the all-new game from Outright Games.
Ahead of the holiday season, fans of the classic children’s staple “Sesame Street” can interact and engage with the world that has dazzled millions in Outright Games’ newest adventure, “Sesame Street: Friends & Fun.”
The new game, now available on all major consoles and PC, lets fans of all ages step digitally onto the street filled with the friendly faces everyone knows, making it the perfect sweet and cozy game for this colder, pre-holiday time of year.
Before the game begins, players create their own fully customizable character, choosing from a range of skin tones, eye shapes and colors, hairstyles and clothing to make a uniquely individual playable character. That character becomes the newest resident of this always-bustling neighborhood.
But before you can get to unpacking, you quickly find yourself welcomed by the warm faces of your new neighbors, all of whom are not only happy to have you but excited for your help as they prepare for a big block party celebrating their corner of the world.
Though players can use their house as a home base, changing up their looks and enjoying playtime with Elmo’s dog, Tango, the heart of the game is outside, within the lively streets the player now calls home.
Alongside fan-favorite characters, players work together to complete quests that help prepare for the neighborhood block party, with each of the neighborhood’s key locations playing a critical role in the story. Players get to engage with each memorable location as they complete tasks to help their new friends with their specific preparations. These tasks often pair basic early-learning fundamentals, like matching shapes and numbers, keeping the gameplay tied to the brand’s overall focus on learning.
While helping your favorite “Sesame Street” characters is the core of the gameplay, the game also gives players free rein of a nicely interactive neighborhood. Free travel between locations alongside Tango, plus cute interactive moments like splashing in puddles or shooting a little basketball, helps make the game feel lived in.
While many games have made unlocking cosmetic items, such as new styling options, a more challenging process, “Sesame Street: Friends & Fun” makes earning new fashion choices fun through a small side quest of finding specially marked boxes along the main routes.
Inside each box, players complete short games that echo the game’s overall focus on learning. With simple tasks such as setting a table, ranking items by size and basic matching, each game is fun, short and sweet, an easy way to exercise young players’ thinking skills through each specific mechanic. Upon providing the correct answer, players earn an unlockable item they can use to style their character.
All of this makes “Sesame Street: Friends & Fun” feel very much in line with online games like the former “Build-A-Bearville,” which let players customize, play and interact within a familiar landscape. It’s a laid-back game that is truly ideal for a season when taking a step back to relax and unwind feels just right.
Though the gameplay is enjoyable, it could become tiring for slightly older players, given its simpler challenges and the inability to do anything outside the main and side quests. Even though you can fully explore the game’s landscape, there’s little to do beyond helping characters. That makes repeat play less enjoyable, unless you have a larger group of players frequently joining in.
There is no question that “Sesame Street: Friends & Fun” lives up to its name. It embodies the sweet, educational spirit of the series it’s based on. Players feel like they’re inside the world they love, standing alongside characters they connect with as they work to pull off the block party.
While the challenges vary, they’re simple enough that younger players can complete them without walking away overwhelmed or discouraged, making this game not just a stocking stuffer, but the perfect snow-day boredom buster.
“Sesame Street: Friends & Fun” is now available on Steam, PlayStation, Nintendo and Xbox. Physical versions can be found at major retailers for $29.99.