TUESDAYS ARE WORSE.
Let’s cut to it… it’s 2026, it’s a Garfield 3D platformer. If you’ve ever played a 3D platformer this will be extremely familiar. It’s not the highly polished experience you would get from Nintendo, but I think OSome Studio has done a fine job here; Garfield moves smoothly, platforming is fine, the levels are interesting if not a little easy at times, lots of collectibles, etc. It’s what a 3D platformer should be which is no surprise, OSome has done plenty of licensed titles with the Smurfs and Asterix & Obelix all of which are pretty good.
I will say some levels are much stronger than others with a specific bonus level showing moments where I could see this game being a really good collectathon and it’s a shame it isn’t, especially when the TV show levels in the first area are not up to par with what comes before and after, but the game tries to not remain stagnant and I do commend that. What does become stagnant is being in the same “area” or “world” for far too long before beating the first boss, but I was also choosing to collect all the collectibles. There’s also a time trial on every level which I did try and I do appreciate that to extend the amount of content.
PLATFORMS: PS5, SWITCH, XBOX SERIES, PC
MSRP: $24.99
PRICE I’D PAY: $19.99
Collecting everything also unlocks furniture for Jon’s house… that’s the extent of the intrigue there but hey at least it’s a virtual trophy and not just a checklist.
I don’t have a great segue, but I do want to point out the soundtrack and sound design. The music is way better than I would have expected. The main theme being remixed into the tutorial level’s track is brilliant and weird and made me really listen to the rest of the game. Throughout I got vibes of Spyro and Ratchet & Clank which are some of my favorite soundtracks of all time so high praise from me. I can’t tell however if I’m being trolled or not because the composer’s name is Max Waffle and this is their only credit… Max Waffle in a food focused Garfield game? Sure…
I guess I have to address the 27 lb. orange tabby cat in the room huh?
Garfield’s voice is not good. Not the actor, the voice. The voice actor David Coburn is a professional who you might know as the voice of Captain Planet among many other roles, his Garfield is just so odd. First off, he also plays Jon (which he does a great job of) and his Garfield is just too similar so when there’s dialog back and forth it sounds like someone sort of talking to themselves which I should, as a player, not be able to tell that before I look at the credits. Second, his take on Garfield (which I assume was based on direction) is too peppy while also sounding like a bad Trump impression. Even the sass I would expect Garfield to deliver to others lacks impact, as if the lines are being said with the wrong inflection. It’s odd and I’m not a purist who expects a Lorenzo Music soundalike, but I do expect the voice to match the dry, lazy, regularly unfriendly Garfield when the writing is doing a serviceable job on the dialog.
The writing is odd because at times it’s clearly Garfield level writing, but at other times it’s very aware of the video game nature of everything and it threw off my guard a bit, partially because a lot of that dialog is delivered by Chef Monday voiced by David Gasman who hams it up which again sort of makes Garfield seem like a weaker performance. I can’t believe I’m recommending a YouTuber to do voice work but go and listen to Majuular on YouTube talk about Ultima for hours and then listen to Garfield in this and tell me which one sounds more like a lazy, sarcastic cat.
I know it seems odd to spend so much time on a weird vocal performance choice but otherwise this game is what it appears to be: a very pretty albeit simple 3D platformer. This is an easy recommendation to people who have younger kids. I think that’s the audience who may have a challenge with this title, but for adults there’s probably not a lot to get out of Escape From Monday and that’s okay. Turn your mind off, run around, win the game with little challenge: you deserve a victory lap, life is tough enough. I mean I kept playing and enjoyed myself. As a kid I would have loved it, as an adult I enjoyed it as it reminded me of simpler times… all but that weird voice.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.