QUBE 10th Anniversary Switch Review – Time to Get Some Aluminum!

QUBE 10th Anniversary, also stylized as Q.U.B.E. 10th Anniversary, is a first-person puzzler akin to games like Portal. The original QUBE released back in 2011, so technically the 11th anniversary here, and it was met with some pretty solid reviews. QUBE 2 even released on the Switch back in 2019, but QUBE 10th Anniversary adds refined visuals, completely redesigned and revised gameplay sections, and a whole new chapter to give a fresh take on the classic puzzler entirely rebuilt from the ground up.

So is this 10th Anniversary (Technically 11th) worthy of a dive? Or is this first-person physics-based puzzler not really worth celebrating? Let’s find out!

For those unfamiliar, QUBE is a first-person puzzle game where you can manipulate colored cubes with your specialized gloves in order to reach the goal. QUBE 10th Anniversary actually comes packed with two different versions of the game: QUBE and QUBE Director’s Cut. The difference between the two is simple in that QUBE is strictly the puzzles without the story, and QUBE Director’s Cut is the full package where the story and puzzles are merged together for the full experience.

This is awesome for people who do not really care for stories in their puzzle games, so they can just jump into QUBE without problem. However, for those interested, the Director’s Cut provides a solid story where you awaken inside of a strange facility only to be greeted by someone on the International Space Station. She can only communicate to you one-way, and she is adamant in helping you, even claiming that you are responsible for saving the world.

It is an extreme scenario for a puzzle story, but it is quite intriguing. The only issue I have with the story is that it leaves a lot of things unanswered, so it depends on you, the player, to figure out the story or head on over to a subreddit page to try and solve it with others who are in the same boat. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as unanswered questions leave a lot to the imagination, and since this is a sci-fi outing, the mind is a great tool to wonder and solve with. However, finishing a storied game should have some closure, not added confusion.

QUBE 10th Anniversary is a physics-based first-person puzzler where you aim your hands at various colors cubes within the confines of a puzzle room to manipulate them. Red cubes move in and out three spaces, yellow always comes in threes and extends differently based on where you aim the cursor, blue ones that retract only to throw whatever object (or you) that puts pressure on it, green cubes spawn green objects, and purple cubes that can rotate walls.

It is quite the mechanic, and it definitely differentiates itself from others on the market. Surprisingly, QUBE 10th Anniversary does a phenomenal job of creating out-of-the-box scenarios for you to figure out and solve. These are not simple puzzles that are easy to see and hard to execute, but instead, these are puzzles that may take some meditation, as some of these are quite abstract in all the right ways. This is not physics-based like Portal where momentum is key, QUBE 10th Anniversary is more about strategy, placement, and timing, so gameplay can be more patient and methodical.

One of the biggest additions to QUBE 10th Anniversary is a brand new chapter, Sector 8. The original and the Director’s Cut both end on Sector 7, and this new section adds a lot more gameplay, which is fantastic. The original game can be cleared rather quickly, about 3-4 hours, but this new chapter nearly doubles that time, which gives the player significantly more than the previous entries. Sector 8 is unlocked after clearing the game normally, so it does feel like an add-on instead of a continuation.

Another fun part of the game are the Collection Items that are hidden throughout. These are little cubes that provide an extra challenge for players looking for more than what the main game has to offer. This is basically more puzzling, and most of the time, finding these cubes is hard enough; collecting them is even harder. This is just another great way to play, and it adds a whole lot more time to the experience if you are interested.

Since Toxic Games has boasted of the enhanced visuals in QUBE 10th Anniversary, how do they fair? Well, the game looks stunning. I played the original back in 2014 or so, and I could tell almost immediately how much things improved since then. The colors are more dynamic, the lighting is spectacular, and although the environment is not the most graphically demanding, everything does look amazing.

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Back when the Director’s Cut initially released, another thing Toxic Games did was revise the soundtrack. I did not notice a whole lot of change in this department for the 10th Anniversary, but the voice acting is quite convincing and the soundtrack is sufficient. The effects have a divine sci-fi feel about them, which really helps to immerse the player, and as you continue with the story, you do begin to pay more attention to the tone of voices and what is being said. This is where things shine brightest in regards to sound, for sure.

If you have never played the original or the Director’s Cut before, QUBE 10th Anniversary is a fantastic deal and one you should definitely check out. The total amount of gameplay to clear the story and the new chapter may not be a lot by today’s standards, but this is definitely one of the better and more unique first-person puzzlers out there, especially on the Switch.

Fans of Portal that have not found themselves branching out should absolutely pick this up. QUBE 10th Anniversary is an example of how developers listen to fans, continue to improve their game over time, and are now providing the best version of the game 10 (Actually 11) years later.

So get ready to celebrate alongside Toxic Games as their physics-based puzzler hits a huge milestone anniversary! They delivered then, and they have delivered even bigger now.

QUBE 10th Anniversary Review provided by Nintendo Link
Publisher: Toxic Games
Release Date: September 28th, 2022
Price: $19.99, £14.99, €19,99
Game Size: 6.4 GB