The indie space celebrates many game franchises, with the Toree series specifically looking toward Sonic. While prior games leaned into level design that encouraged speed-running, the moveset was limited to running and jumping.
With Toree Saturn, the bird puts on power sneakers and speeds through with new abilities and even faster levels. After playing through the short campaign, this is one brisk adventure I’ll always run back to.
Publisher/Developer: Siactro
Platforms: Steam (PC), Nintendo Switch
Price: $4.99
Release Date: August 8th, 2025
Reviewed on Nintendo Switch 2
Gotta Go Fast – Premise
- Inspired by 90’s platformers, Toree Saturn features its title character going on a quest to take down his edgy rival.
- The limited cast has memorable designs, and the game’s animation work helps convey its simple premise.
Toree is a cute little bird fella who likes going fast and enjoys ice cream. When a rival bird challenges him to a race, he speeds past him to victory. But it pushes his rival to villainy, stealing a new ice cream flavor. Toree learns of this and speeds into action!
It’s a simple premise, but the cast is charming, with their character designs and the game’s limited dialogue, to keep you engaged. The game’s short story mode features cutscenes where characters tell the tale through animations and actions rather than traditional dialogue. It adds to the game’s retro vibe and, overall, works well for the story’s half-hour runtime.
Rolling Around – Gameplay
- The gameplay takes mechanics and elements from the Sonic Adventure titles and adapts them to the simple ‘run and jump’ gameplay from prior Toree games.
- Homing Attack and Drop Dash are new moves for Toree, and they feel fantastic to use.
Inspired by the Sonic series, Toree Saturn is all about going fast and completing levels quickly. He can perform simple jumps, but his new moveset additions include a drop dash and a homing attack. A drop dash is done by pressing the right trigger when in the air, with Toree speeding ahead. Chaining these near dash pads and after a successful homing chain is immensely satisfying.
Speaking of homing chains, the homing attack is done by pressing the jump button when a target appears. Landing one resets your jumps, giving you additional air time. But you can instead keep your momentum by doing the homing chains before landing on the ground.
Both abilities fill out Toree’s simple move pool, reminding me of the original Sonic Adventure. Similar to Sonic in that game, Toree is a joy to control, and nailing those A and S Ranks is a fantastic thrill.
Not Your Average Hill – Level Design
- Levels are linear but encourage using homing targets, dash panels, and more to reach the goal in record speed.
- They heavily encourage the usage of Toree’s abilities and feature hidden goodies. They include mini-games and collectibles (which unlock additional content).
Supporting the strong but simple mechanics is tight level design. Racing across neon-lit cities, mysterious temples, and even a loving homage to a classic of the AGES, every level encourages masterful player movement.
They lean close to the level design framework of Sonic Adventure 2, where nailing actions and jumps at the right moments can get you ever closer to the highest level rank. Some levels even have set-pieces, with two highlights being a race kicking off the adventure and a series of exploding battleships in another.
They do have their hidden goodies, and collecting three pink ice creams in each level can unlock a bonus stage. In addition, some levels hide a fun mini-game that you can play in a hub area. These don’t add too much to the experience, but are a nice bonus for those who like collecting everything.
Casting A ’90s Dream – Presentation/Sound
- Toree Saturn features a SEGA Saturn/Nintendo 64-inspired art style, combining surreal locations, low-poly textures, and more to create a striking look.
- Some levels use more ‘grounded’ locations alongside the surreal landscapes Toree speeds across, as well.
- Music is a loving homage to SEGA 90’s classics, with some vocal tracks heavily reminiscent of the 90’s 3D Sonic titles.
The biggest accomplishment of Toree Saturn is the game’s presentation. In many cases, it wouldn’t feel out of place on a SEGA Saturn with sharp pixels, imaginative landscapes, and surreal background elements. Toree Saturn features more grounded locations compared to prior games in the series, with one example being two levels set on a Sonic Adventure 2-inspired ‘Metal Harbor’ like stage.
However, other stages retain the series trademark out-there look. Highlights of this include a stage set in the clouds and another where Death itself guides Toree through a dangerous maze.
The soundtrack is my favorite part of the game’s vibrant presentation, featuring a varied score. You have tracks that feel ripped right out of Sonic Adventure 2, kicking off Toree’s quest and more chill, zen-like bops. One highlight from the soundtrack is called ‘Rings of Saturn’, featuring Johnny Gioeli of Crush 40 on vocals.
It plays during one of the game’s final stages and feels right at home in an experience celebrating the 90’s and the best of 3D Sonic-like platformers.
Closing Thoughts on Toree Saturn
Being an avid fan of the Sonic the Hedgehog series, I love seeing indie franchises taking what SEGA rolled with and doing cool things with those concepts.
Adapting new moves from recent Sonic titles into already tight and fun gameplay with even better level design, Toree Saturn is a love letter to 90’s speedy platformers that any fan of the genre would be remiss in missing out on.
Score: 8 out of 10
This game was purchased by the reviewer.
Pros:
- Tight controls and enjoyable level design built with them in mind
- Strong presentation and fantastic musical score
- The game’s levels invite endless replays for higher letter scores
- Bonus unlockables to collect
- The $5 price point is very inviting
Cons:
- Short run time for story mode
