Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion Switch Review – Doing Crimes as a Root Vegetable

From my personal experience, any game that makes you feel like a champion for getting the first weapon is probably going to be pretty great. But what about a game that also makes you feel amazing about exploring the world, reading the dialogue, uncovering the lore, meeting the characters, finding collectibles and beating up bosses? Surely something so wonderful can’t exist, right? Well, it does! It’s called Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion. It was created by Snoozy Kazoo, and it’s one of the most wholesome and hilarious video games ever developed.

So is this worth your time and tax-evaded money? Let’s find out!

It’s set in a world inhabited by living fruit and vegetables, ruled by a corrupt onion mayor. You take control of Turnip Boy, a young citizen who has evaded his taxes and is now the said mayor’s personal assistant. Mayor Onion has four items for you to collect, each one linking to a new area, mechanic, boss, and chapter in the surprisingly dark story. But what does the mayor want with these items? Well, to find out, you’re going to have to play the game! 

Even if you’re not motivated by the story, there’s something for every type of gamer to enjoy. My personal highlight would have to be the character designs of the charming and colourful NPCs you encounter on your travels. From an avocado archaeologist, to a highly intelligent bean child, a pickle mafia, and even a trio of radish secret agents. I never got bored of hearing their stories and completing simple tasks for them.

Every character has a clear purpose whether that was keeping you from the next area, giving you a hat, or revealing more of the story.

On the subject of the story, I was blown away by how much effort has been put into making this game deeper than just a tale about vegetables. Diary entries, letters, and even photographs give you clues as to what happened to the humans that use to inhabit the world.

I think this is what makes Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion such an incredibly popular game. Although it’s hilarious and adorable, there’s an almost disturbing story beneath the surface that can’t be easy for a small studio to pull off so well.

There are a couple of small improvements that could be made. In each of the boss fights, there is an opportunity to use the new ability you’ve mastered in the previous level. However, it was honestly easier to just whack them with your sword. I have to say this got a little repetitive, especially with having to watch the same cutscene before every attempt.

The image was occasionally a bit laggy, which was fine most of the time, but a bit of a pain during boss fights. These are just small things that should absolutely not put you off enjoying the overall game. 

Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion is also very short. It takes no more than three hours to complete plus another half hour or so to find all the collectible items, such as hats to wear and documents to rip. Whether this is a good thing or not is really up to the player. I enjoyed taking a short break from the long, detailed, and honestly very hard games I mostly play to experience something charming and simple.

But of course there is always the obvious: less time to enjoy the beautiful pixel art world. I think as long as you’re aware that the playtime is short before you start, you won’t be disappointed. 

All in all, Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion is one of the best games of 2021 so far. It hides a deep story behind adorable art and never failed to entertain me. It’s simple to understand, wonderful to listen to the soundtrack, and an absolute pleasure to experience in general. It’s short, beautiful, and shouldn’t be missing from anyone’s library.

Do not evade this game like Turnip Boy evaded his taxes.

Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion Review provided by Nintendo Link
Developer: Snoozy Kazoo
Publisher: Graffiti Games
Release Date: April 22, 2021
Price: $14.99, £13.49, €12.50
Game Size: 259MB