to a T PS5 Review. to a T is a game about disability and the importance of embracing your own differences, no matter what. It’s a joyful game and empowering, to some extent. However, to a T takes a different approach to the exploration of disability and presents a world that largely already accepts its protagonist for who they are, rather than the struggle of finding sanctuary.
On the one hand, it’s a pleasant and heartwarming interpretation of the subject matter. It’s nice to envisage a world where someone’s disability is accounted for. On the other hand, I feel like to a T struggles to truly embody the idea and ventures into some bizarre territory that I don’t think needed to be included.
None of this is a problem per se, but it takes away from what should be a tightly focused game with a heart of gold.
to a T Review (PS5) – A Heart of Gold With Some Rough Edges
I Wake Up
One of the most striking elements of to a T is the immediate welcome we get to the world. Playing as Teen (named by you), you wake up on a school day and get yourself ready for a day fraught with anxiety, assisted by Dog (also named by you). An extended introductory sequence where you help Teen get ready really shows how well this world is made for him.
Special taps to help him wash his face without help, a custom-made spoon to help him eat cereal every day, there are a lot of conversations about the importance of autonomy and I think this is something that will resonate with a lot of young people.
Being given the freedom to do what you want and to be gently aided by those around you, it’s a nice way to live. The game never makes you suffer through a mechanically obtuse sequence to emulate the difficulties of Teen’s condition; you just do it. And I think that dignity is very important.
And yet, I don’t feel like the game truly goes far enough to explore the issues that it raises. Anxiety around disability is a major sticking point for Teen, and yet, to a T never actually shows why he might be anxious. There are “bullies” who are quickly befriended, but this is the extent to which we might understand his anxiety.
I totally understand that they don’t want to make a game that revels in its own poor treatment of a protagonist, but I feel like it may swerve the issue just that little bit too much. To a T is an empowering game, and I wish it gave Teen a chance to really properly stand for themselves.
Exploring the World
For the most part, to a T is a solidly linear game, made up of specific “episodes” with small plots. One episode might be about the basic life of Teen, while another one might be how they come to learn the ins and outs of their unique abilities. I enjoyed sitting down at the end of the day and quickly being able to jump into an episode and finish it in a small session.
There are brief moments to explore the city, but these are small interludes between the episodes where the major plot unfolds. It’s a lax experience that never puts pressure on the player to go in any particular direction; coins to collect and minigames to play mean that there’s an incentive to explore around outside of the main story, which is a nice bonus, given how linear the main episodes are.
You aren’t really meant to rush your way through to a T; you’re encouraged to take it slow and really get to grips with how Teen sees the world around them and the way that they connect with it. Being given the freedom to do this as you like, outside of prescribed moments, really helps to sell that there is a world here to explore.
There’s a DJ Pigeon, need I say more?
A Characteristic Style
to a T harnesses the signature style of Keita Takahashi for a more narrative focus when compared to his other games. The visual style is incredibly evocative of games like Wattam and Katamari Damacy; it’s cozy, welcoming and incredibly expressive in the moments that it needs to be. Each setpiece is given the chance to properly shine with this visual flair.
The quiet moments also flourish under this style, to make for an incredibly offbeat yet cohesive experience bursting with imagination. The seaside town that you explore across the runtime became a place that I genuinely enjoyed walking around for the sake of doing it rather than moving from objective to objective.
Maybe that speaks more to my own want to live by the sea with a tram, but wish fulfilment be damned, I loved being in this world.
The decision to also bookend every episode with a catchy opening and ending theme also made me smile each time we got to hear them. Does it make much sense? Not really, but I still enjoyed hearing about how Giraffe (voiced by the resplendent Rebecca Sugar) goes about her day to make sandwiches for the townsfolk.
Reaching A Bit Far
If anything, I wish to a T stuck to this premise a bit more closely and embraced itself, because as it is, I feel like the game overstretches itself and does itself a disservice in the process. That isn’t to say that the game is written poorly; it’s an incredibly entertaining and earnest adventure that obviously means well.
to a T takes a foundational principle of 3D-modelling and uses it as a vehicle to explore the challenges of disability. The game obviously means well and shows clear imaginative drive when it comes to the subject matter. The experience of disability is undeniably an important story to tell, which is why I finished the game feeling like it had almost lost sight of itself.
For as many cool moments that there were, and how often the humour managed to land, I can’t help but feel like to a T should have maybe kept its feet on the ground when exploring this kind of subject.
Again, what’s here isn’t bad, but I feel like there was something else here to be explored beyond the obligation to come up with a massive twist. Things can be as they are; not everything needs a reason to be. On the flipside, there are moments where it feels like to a T manages to fabulously embody itself. A particular sequence highlights the importance of support in everyday life that genuinely had an impact on the experience of gameplay, and I wanted to see more of that.
I appreciate that Keita Takahashi is known for bizarre and wonderful concepts with a heart of gold, but I feel like sometimes that needs to make way for a genuine story of groundedness and sincerity, rather than aiming for the moon in how far you can jump a shark.
I liked to a T, but by the end, it certainly wasn’t what I was expecting from a game about disability. Ultimately, the game is all about accepting that you’re the perfect shape – can we really hold it to the torch for that?
to a T is out now for PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S.
Review code kindly provided by publisher.