Aliisha Switch Review – Twins Don’t Always Connect Perfectly

Aliisha, also stylized as Aliisha: The Oblivion of Twin Goddesses, is a unique indie game by Joy Brick and Underscore Games. The title follows twin sisters with unique characteristics, and between the two of them, they solve puzzles as they journey through abandoned areas and discover some amazing things along the way.

So is Aliisha an experience that fits right at home on the Nintendo Switch? Or do these twins not really work well together? Let’s find out!

Aliisha follows Lisha and Aisha, twin sisters, as they explore an abandoned temple from long ago. Both girls are blessed with special abilities that make them quite unique. Lisha is gifted with a highly rational mind but nearly incapable of perceiving emotions or affection. Aisha is very sensitive and susceptible, and she loves to go on adventures. The two are an interesting pair, for sure.

They both have abilities that help them on their journey, and this does make for an interesting experience whether you are playing alone or with a friend. The cooperative nature of the two-player experience helps to solidify the feeling of two sisters deeply connected by their natural twin relationship, and seeing them interact and work together with their beautifully different personalities is a delight.

It is not the deepest or most profound story, but there is a lot of lore to digest, if that is your interest, and the connection the girls share and the way they work together is a wonderful setting that does help set the table for what should be a fun time puzzle-solving. Unfortunately, this is where problems arise.

Aliisha is a third-person cooperative puzzle game where you need to use both sisters (In this case, one actual sister and a robot controlled by the other sister called AMBU). It truly is a great idea, and when the puzzles are organized well, it is a solid experience, especially in co-op mode. However, some of the puzzles are so convoluted that it does create a sour experience at times.

One of the first major frustrations is how the co-op is handled. For starters, two players need to have the game and play locally in order to enjoy the experience. Secondly, there is no way to convert a single player experience into a co-op experience or vice versa, which means you have to create separate save files if you are playing single player and multiplayer. Not the best setup, and I am honestly a bit surprised by the lack of local splitscreen. However, I do understand the desire of the team to create a unique cooperative experience, but that does limit potential buyers who only have one Switch from truly enjoying the title.

Gameplay is rather sluggish, and to be honest, it is not the most enjoyable experience. In single player, solving puzzles by switching between the two characters can be a chore, and the motion controls throughout the entire game rarely-to-never work properly, which makes many of these puzzles and dance sequences to be a pain. Large puzzles rooms also tend to be rather confusing, as you are too dependent on Aisha’s ability to scan the room for important items or areas. Sadly, though, this mechanic can also be confusing, as already completed tasks will still garner attention from the ability.

As far as the gameplay goes, Aliisha suffers tremendously from a lack of insight or hints. Puzzles and actions can get lost easily, and outside of a few “no duh” comments from Aisha and Lisha, figuring out some obscure situations on your own can become painful. Rarely did I feel accomplished when I figured something out, and moreso did I feel frustration that the solution was as bizarre as it was. “Boss” scenarios share this same frustration, and the overall feel of the gameplay and controls leaves a lot to be desired.

Thankfully, Aliisha is elevated tremendously thanks to the gorgeous graphics and stunning art style. There are times where it looks a little silly, particularly in the ancient statues, but the character models look great, the lighting effects at random points, especially during certain segments, are just beautiful, and the lush and creative environments are well designed and detailed. This temple is incredibly organized with lots of little windows into an ancient time that helps to round the story up, which is awesome to watch unfold, and things only continue to improve thanks to the music.

The soundtrack in Aliisha is incredible. The relaxing and soothing music helps to calm the nerves, which is important considering how easy it is to get upset with some of the obscure and frustrating puzzles. The voice acting, for the most part, is quite good, and I do enjoy the sisterly banter between Lisha and Aisha. There are times, however, where the sisters continue to say the same thing over and over again as you try to figure out puzzle situations, but that is more the fault of the gameplay than it is the voice acting.

Aliisha: The Oblivion of the Twin Goddesses is such a painful game to review, because it does do some things fantastically while missing the mark with one of the most important areas of a video game: gameplay. It does feel like Aliisha was meant for the Wii U, as the two-player scheme seems perfect for a single Wii U setup. Sadly, though, it does not work too well with the Switch, especially considering you need two Switch consoles and two downloaded copies of the game.

I really want to like this game, but with the single player and cooperative experience currently the way they are, it is difficult to recommend Aliisha. If the game is later patched with a better hint system, this could help the single player experience a lot, but adding a splitscreen option would elevate the game even more.

As it stands now, Aliisha is a good fit for those looking for a solid narrative, as this is a beefy game with loads of puzzles, lots of play time, and a unique cooperative experience for those who can do it. It is too bad that things couldn’t be a bit more refined in regards to the gameplay, as there is a ton of potential in this one, but currently I would just wait for a sale if you are still interested or for development to patch them out down the line.

Aliisha Switch Review provided by Nintendo Link
Publisher: SOFTSTAR, PQube
Developer: Joy Brick Inc., Underscore Co., Ltd, Underscore Games
Release Date: November 24th, 2022
Price: $32.99, £30.00, €32,99
Game Size: 3.1 GB