Poppy Playtime Chapter 3 is an exciting addition to the beloved series, offering new challenges, intriguing puzzles, and captivating storytelling. It expands on the mechanics and narratives of the previous games, providing a thrilling and immersive experience. Regrettably, a few performance issues and bugs hinder its potential. However, if Mob Entertainment follows through with the promised fixes, it has the potential to earn a nearly flawless score.
Poppy Playtime is a well-known series that has made a name for itself. Regardless of whether you’ve played the first two chapters, it’s highly likely that you’re familiar with the name by now or at least have seen numerous Huggy Wuggys out in the wild. This game has earned its reputation. Its art style is one-of-a-kind, the gameplay is captivating, and the concept and setting are intriguing. Not to mention, it has an abundance of lore that will keep you hooked. It’s no wonder this game has become a staple in the horror genre in recent years.
The ending of Poppy Playtime Chapter 2 was quite intense. The train we were on crashed, and Poppy ominously revealed that she wouldn’t allow us to leave. However, let’s set that aside for now and move on to Chapter 3. It starts with a nostalgic cartoon that introduces us to the Grinning Critters and, more importantly, Poppy Playtime’s CatNap, who plays the role of the main antagonist in this new installment.
Poppy Playtime Chapter 3 Game Information
| Updated | Mar 1, 2024 |
|---|---|
| Compatible with | Android 8.0+ (Oreo, API 26) |
| Last version | 0.4.9 |
| Architecture | arm64-v8a,armeabi-v7a |
| Category | Free Action Game |
| Google Play Link | mobgamesa3.poppyplaytime3 |
Poppy Playtime Chapter 3 Features
Graphics
The graphics in this chapter are impressive and stand out among the rest of the game. The environmental modeling and artwork are excellent, although I have some reservations about specific character models. They need the visually appealing texturing seen in previous chapters.
New Mechanics
The new mechanics improve on what was introduced in the previous chapters. However, I have some reservations about how they were implemented. Messing around with the light pole wire thingies and turrets could have been more enjoyable, but using the new hands was a lot of fun.
Voice Acting & Writing
The voice acting in this chapter is noticeably improved compared to the previous chapters, particularly Chapter 2. Mommy’s voice actor is fantastic, but the lines she was given in some scenes were truly terrible. Miss Delight, Ollie, Poppy, and the other miscellaneous cutouts deliver their lines with skill and impressive acting. Catnap’s voice and line seemed somewhat out of sync with the rest, but it’s not a major issue since he only has a few lines.
Puzzles
The puzzles in this chapter are an improvement compared to previous ones, but they need to be more used and create tension in the horror atmosphere. The turret and light pole mechanisms are not user-friendly and lack clear instructions, making them difficult to use. Puzzles that don’t involve these mechanisms are more enjoyable.
Animations
Some of the animations in this chapter, like Catnap’s and Critters’, are quite stiff and lanky, which stands out compared to the others, which are generally good. They lack the unsettling creepiness of being “stiff” or “lanky” but rather come across as poorly animated. The cutscenes were impressively well-executed, particularly the Catnap death.
Horror
I found this chapter to need more scares. After playing countless horror games, I may have become immune to the fear factor, but I didn’t feel any suspense. Let’s compare Outlast to this chapter. In Outlast, multiple scripted segments build tension and lead to scenes where the enemy stalks you or a chase sequence occurs. Remove any elements that create tension and only retain the chase sequences in Chapter 3. Even the more intense sequences, like Dogday or Catnap, lacked any suspense leading up to their arrival, making them not scary.
Performance
I have a high-performance PC. I can effortlessly run games like Death Stranding, Horizon Zero Dawn, GTA5, and Half Life: Alyx at the highest settings, achieving a smooth 120 FPS or even higher. For some reason, this chapter didn’t go well for me. Some parts, like the orphanage, had significant lag issues and dropped to as low as 10 FPS. It’s probably not my computer itself (more like hardware they never supported), but it still needs to be fixed.
Lighting & Contrast
The lighting and contrast in this chapter were off. The gamma varies greatly in different areas, and the entire chapter had a consistent white filter over the screen despite multiple adjustments to achieve the desired contrast and saturation.
Difficulty & Target Audience
Although it is the darkest chapter yet, it is clear that significant adjustments have been made to cater to their intended audience: impressionable children. After experiencing multiple deaths during the final bossfight, the difficulty level significantly decreased, resulting in Catnap appearing only three times over three minutes. So simple. Certain puzzles are pretty simple, while others need to improve on subpar game design, such as the expectation for players to frequently lookup (which can be challenging, as evidenced by numerous instances).
