Turtle Tale could be called “My First Run and Gun Game.” You control a bipedal turtle with a squirt gun who can move left or right, jump, and shoot directly in front of him. You go about some mild platforming, which becomes unusually demanding later in the game, and fire a gun that never changes or increases in power at the same handful of enemies for 15 stages, collecting fruit as you go. If you find all of the fruit in the game (which is difficult not to do), you’ll unlock a Hard Mode.

The game just isn’t very good. Shelldon is slow and doesn’t jump very far. His squirt gun is laughably weak. The platforming is basic stuff—the occasional moving platform or forced-scrolling stage seems out of place, but the added complexity is welcome. Enemies do little more than move back and forth, though trolls and Tiki-themed enemies throw objects at you. You have unlimited lives and continue from checkpoints in each stage. Hard Mode doesn’t really gel with the game’s slow movement or weak squirt gun, and I don’t recommend it. It throws a lot more enemies at you and the screen auto-scrolls. Because it takes so long to kill certain enemies with your wimpy squirt gun, you’re constantly being shoved forward by the screen before you’ve cleared a path. The game ends with a boss fight that’s either frustrating or simple based on what attacks he chooses to spam.

Despite its best efforts, I enjoyed bits and pieces of Turtle Tale. The idea that Shelldon is out to kill a bunch of monkey pirates who are on shore leave is funny enough, but the fact that our terrapin hero slaughters every living thing on the island is also great. Shelldon’s got a lot of anger. I will say that, despite the simplistic nature of the graphics, Shelldon and his animal enemies have a lot of personality, and the 3D effect is particularly impressive. The backgrounds have incredible depth. The music is good but immediately forgettable.

It’s a nice effort, but I hope that Saturnine Games makes a deeper experience for their next game.