Shelter Generations from Might and Delight and Circle Entertainment is a collection of two games, their soundtracks, and two interactive stories. Want to learn more? Then check out our Shelter Generations review!

 

Shelter Generations includes Shelter 2, Paws, the respective soundtrack for each game, and two short interactive stories you can dive into right from the start. As you begin playing Shelter 2, the main attraction for this collection, you’ll find yourself in control of a lynx during a dangerous storm. After walking for a few seconds with the left analog stick and moving the camera around with the right one, the game will tell you that you can run by holding down the ZL button and that you can jump by pressing the A button. With this new knowledge, you’ll immediately need to start running to get away from the pack of wolfs that will show up right behind you… or else!

The lynx you control is actually pregnant, and after the short sequence in which you’ll escape from the wolves, and another story sequence, it will give birth to four offspring. This means you will need to provide for the young cubs, so out into the open land, you will go in search of the food they need. You’ll be able to press on the B button to make your prey pop in a bright red, and this will also show you in what direction your cubs are as we as where each additional section is located.

A stamina bar in the lower left corner of the screen will let you know how long you can run before the lynx gets tired, so keep that in mind so that you don’t end up running towards lunch with a stamina bar that is almost empty. After feeding the cubs a few times, they will join you on your journey, which means you’ll need to be careful as you run around the land since you’ll now have to keep them safe. If you hear an eagle, be ready to run and jump to attack it before it can grab one of your cubs!

There are several collectibles to find in the land of Shelter 2, so be sure to press the R button to check how many you’ve found of each type. There are hundreds in total, so keep your eyes open as you run all over the place! There are rocks, feathers, flowers, and other things to find, so if you want to extend your time with the game to get 100%, you’ll need to spend at least a couple extra hours with it before you can find them all. You’ll need to stop running to be able to grab a collectible, not to mention you’ll need to slow down to be able to notice the distinctive glow that tells you “this is something you need to get.”

Paws, the second game in Shelter Generations, is a shorter, more linear affair. In it, you will take control of one of the cubs, following the mother lynx around. You will get to run and jump as a little one, and you won’t be able to get left behind by the group since the mother lynx will quickly come go pick you up. After catching and eating some butterflies with the other cubs, your day will end… but you will soon wake up in the middle of the night and will have to follow your mother by using the B button to see and follow her prints on the ground. What will you find as you follow her?

 

You will play through some other small sections until the game proper begins when you are separate from your mother and the other cubs when trying to cross a river that is starting to grow because of the heavy rain. Will you be able to find a way to be reunited with your family? You will need to eat along the way, catching frogs, butterflies or eating unguarded eggs, and you will also need to avoid predators and hazards to stay alive.

The two interactive storybooks in the collection are Fables From the Den and The Lonesome Fog. I can’t talk about them since revealing its content would spoil the fun, but they’re fun short stories that you can enjoy with your kids as a nice bonus on top of the two games in this package – they’re colorful and entertaining.

Shelter Generations is a nice package that is console exclusive to the Nintendo Switch. It has Shelter 2, a full game with some extra DLC included right from the start, a shorter game in Paws that gives you a different look of things as you take on the role of a cub, two soundtracks and two interactive storybooks, which more than justify the $19.99 asking price. Circle Entertainment has been giving us quirky indie games for a while now, and Shelter Generations is one you should definitely check out on Nintendo Switch.

Disclaimer
This Shelter Generations review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by Circle Entertainment.