Retro-inspired Ruffy and the Riverside’s Demo is Out Now

Ruffy and the Riverside’s Demo is Out Now – Nostalgia Meets Innovation in This Retro-inspired 3D Platformer!

Unlike his signature move, Ruffy and the Riverside isn’t just a copy & paste of its N64-inspirations! No need to wait for Steam Next Fest, play the demo today.

German indie studio Zockrates Laboratories and US publisher Phiphen Games are jumping with joy because they can finally let players explore the demo for Ruffy and the Riverside. The Demo is Out Now on Steam, ahead of the game’s participation in the February Steam Next Fest, from Feb 24th to March 3rd.

The Steam demo offers a unique first look at the colourful world of Riverside and lets players collect stars by completing various challenges. Gamers who’ve been around long enough to live through the Nintendo 64 days will surely appreciate the wink to the good old days found in the demo’s level structure. Just jump right in and grab those stars!

Console-only players won’t have to wait too long to start swapping textures as well, because next to Steam and Epic Games, the full release for PlayStation 5, Xbox One & Series X|S and Nintendo Switch(es) will all arrive on your favourite platform soon!

Ruffy and the Riverside’s Demo Trailer:

Here is what press & media who had early access to the demo had to say after collecting stars to their hearts’ desire:

“This new hand-drawn 3D platformer is bursting with Nintendo-level inventiveness!”

​- NintendoLife

“A nostalgic N64-inspired adventure that rocks to its own beat. Ruffy and the Riverside doesn’t just lean on nostalgia, it catapults past it.”

​- NoisyPixel

“Ever since I saw Ruffy and the Riverside, I was hooked on the way it looked and its unique gameplay mechanics. It’s such a unique combination of a 3D style with the hand-painted sprites.”

​- GameXplain

“One of the 3D platformers I’m most excited about!, every moment feels magical and full of surprise!”

​- Best Indie Games

“Judging by the demo, Ruffy and the Riverside might be one of this year’s best platformers!”

​- PC Gamer

About the game

In Ruffy and the Riverside, you wield the magic power of SWAP, using it to Copy & Paste textures within the game world. Turn ice into lava or waterfalls into vines as you ride hay bales, explore, fight, and solve puzzles throughout Riverside. Unleash your imagination in this quirky open-world action game that literally lets you change the world!

Ruffy just won’t stop! When the 3D world ends, he leaps into new 2D levels to collect even more treasures, but watch out – many obstacles must be swapped before you can safely pass through walls.

Explore the marvelous open world of Riverside, where Ruffy embarks on playful side quests, masters challenges, and collects magic treasures across seven distant regions. Ride hay bales, perform tricks on secret rails, and discover unknown areas as you meet the mysterious Etoi and help the colourful cast of characters.

Key Features

• Use and master the power of SWAP to transform elements in the game world.
• Overcome various puzzles through creative manipulation of objects.
• Jump, fight and skate around the open world of Riverside
• Solve puzzles and find treasures hidden in 2D levels
• Unlock seven outer regions, each with unique challenges and settings.
• More than a dozen characters each with quests to complete
• Use dreamstones to create & apply custom textures to elements like stone, waterfalls and more…
• Enjoy a magical atmosphere with a focus on exploration & discovery.
• Gather various collectables, such as coins, butterflies, dreamstones and cute Etoi creatures!

About Zockrates Laboratories (developer)

We are a team of artists, programmers and musicians from Nuremberg, Germany, and we love video games. We used to make video game art, but since Ruffy smiled at us for the first time from a piece of paper in 2017 and started swapping things right before our eyes in a prototype, we had to move on and founded Zockrates Laboratories. However, our aim has remained the same. We want to bring extraordinary gameplay, aesthetic enjoyment in visuals and music and most importantly a lot of fun.

About Phiphen Games (publisher)

Phiphen Games was founded with the purpose of publishing cutting-edge and unmistakably unique games. They help innovative developers across all genres & budget levels bring their projects to major platforms and reach a global audience.

Copyright © 2025 Zockrates Laboratories and Phiphen Games LLC, All rights reserved. ​ Published in Asia by H2 Interactive Co., Ltd