Princess Peach: Showtime Preview

On the surface Princess Peach: Showtime! looks like just another Kirby game, targeting a slightly different audience. They are both pink and throughout their adventure, they both gain new powers, but as Princess Peach changes costumes backstage, she doesn’t just attack people in different ways, like the pink round hero, but the gameplay drastically changes. It’s this commitment to the unknown that makes Princess Peach: Showtime! a game that should keep players engaged from start to finish.

This isn’t Princess Peaches first solo outing. There was Super Princess Peach for the Nintendo DS back in 2005, but at its core, was just a 2D Super Mario side scroller with a Princess Peach skin. Princess Peach: Showtime! finally gives the the often found damsel in distress her first true solo outing, built around a completely new concept with brand new mechanics.

The first level was Swordfighter Peach and felt like a 2.5D side scrolling platformer, but moving into the second stage with Patisserie Peach, the gameplay drastically changed. Peach finds herself center stage at a bakery with mini games that felt reminiscent of Mario Party as you mixed together a batch of cookies and decorated cakes using a combination of button prompts before the timer expired.

The constant changing of gameplay mechanics is both exciting and terrifying. Unlike other classic Nintendo titles, what you play in the first five minutes will be similar to what you play in the last five minutes, Princess Peach: Showtime! takes a bold risk with constant changing of gameplay mechanics that might alienate some players. However, I think for the intended audience, this will work perfectly as you are always experiencing something new.

Princess Peach: Showtime! looks great, but does shine a theatre sized spotlight on the age of the Nintendo Switch, which is now entering its eighth year. Mostly, the game runs fine, but there are some loading sections and transitions that feel clunky. Also not being developed in house means that Princess Peach: Showtime! feels like it’s missing one magic intangible ingredient.

Swordfighter Peach had fairly basic controls, as you mainly only used the A and B button. The same button fro attack was the same button for dodge and this drastically limits the depth of gameplay and feels like a missed opportunity. Even dating back to 2017, Super Mario Odyssey had a normal mode and an assist mode, which gave players choice for how difficult they wanted the experience.

The main concern heading into full release would be the length. In the demo, there are two stages open in the theatre that allow you to become Swordfighter Peach and Patisserie Peach. Both of which were completed in a rather expeditious manner.

In total, ten different costume changes have been announced so far including stages like Detective and Ninja Peach. Like most Nintendo platformers, there are plenty of different items to collect to encourage a revisit, but with the two stages in the demo taking 30-40 minutes, this would roughly mean the game is about 5 hours, which is definitely on the short end, especially with the level of depth in the game.

Although a few concerning questions remaining headlining into release, there is the reassurance that Princess Peach: Showtime! is an original concept that has Nintendo doing what it does best, which is creating a fun and whimsical experience.I don’t think Showtime will become an iconic Nintendo title, but with some tweaking and refinement, I can see the series becoming a mainstay in the Nintendo stable.