Review: Super Spy Raccoon (Nintendo Switch)

Flynn’s Arcade is my new favorite hangout. Some of you may prefer Arcade Archives across town, and I get that. Huge selection. Most of your all-time favs are there. But they never get anything new. Flynn’s does, the latest of which is Super Spy Raccoon.

Developed by Slain Mascot, Super Spy Raccoon continues the Flynn’s Arcade tradition of giving us new games developed as if intended for release in 1982. Visually, they nailed it. One look at the screenshots and you may wonder if you’ve already played this game.

You haven’t, and you’d remember, because it differs from your favorite arcade classics in one important way.

It’s difficult. Immediately.

Arcade games, as I’ve surely mentioned before, liked to give you a false sense of security. The opening screens were pretty easy, introducing you slowly to the game’s flow before ramping up the difficulty to get you off the machine so the next kid could drop in a quarter. Not so with Super Spy Raccoon. In my first game, I lost all three lives within 15 seconds.

At an arcade, I would’ve bailed and moved onto something I was actually good at—like Tapper or Frogger. But I’m not sinking quarters into Super Spy Raccoon, just time, and that makes the initial challenge bearable.

Like nearly every early arcade game you’ve ever played, the point is to clean the screen. Unlike in nearly every arcade game you’ve played, there’s no one or nothing to kill. You’re a spy, so the point is to be sneaky as you try to obtain all the classified documents spread through the game’s five single-screen levels.

Of course, there are enemies in the way. Some move in set patterns. Some just stand still and scout left to right in an attempt to c​​atch you. Spotlights sweep the screens.

If you’re detected, you lose a life. Lose three, and you’re done. Kind of. The game allows you to continue, but at a decreased point value. This is a clever way to let you push through the game while making sure you’re not cheating your way onto the leaderboards.

This approach makes Super Spy Raccoon more of a puzzle game than an action platformer. You’ll need to plan your route carefully, then make the proper adjustments when you realize your route won’t work. Getting to a document without being caught is one thing. Getting back from it is another.

The game does aid you via hiding spots (shrubs, statutes, etc.), and there’s a handy invisibility potion you can grab to temporarily avoid detection.

Not even these, however, are always helpful; fireballs, although they can’t “see” you, can hit you wherever you are. Always with the accursed fireballs.

Super Spy Raccoon does a good job of keeping the action moving, and I was surprised a game based on hiding was still so frenetic. Things move quickly, and the precise controls are up for it. Still, there are only five levels that repeat until you reach the kill screen. That’s to be expected, considering the gaming era the developers targeted, but it also means that repetition sets in pretty quickly. If you have no interest in leaderboards, this isn’t a game that will hold your attention for long periods of time, especially after you’ve finally made it through all five levels.

It is, however, a game you’re likely to hold onto. I often pull up games like this when I’m not in the mood for a long or highly focused playing session. Super Spy Raccoon will sit comfortably amongst longtime favorites such as Donkey Kong and Sunset Riders, along with Flynn’s Arcade’s own Donut Dodo and Goliath Depot, when that mood strikes.

And the more new machines Flynn’s Arcade brings in, the more often that mood will strike.