Common Sense Media Review
By Brett Molina
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Fun, spooky, puzzle-based clone adventure set in space.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 10+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
The Swapper
What's It About?
THE SWAPPER starts off with the mysterious lead character stranded on a space station. To aid his escape, he uses a special weapon that creates clones of himself. Players can create up to five clones at once and have the option to "jump" into another clone at any time. The game is described as a puzzle platformer, where players navigate sections of the space station and complete a series of environmental puzzles to advance. For example, early stages require players to grab orbs to power a panel and move forward. Red and blue lights will pop up during some puzzles and hamper the abilities of the your weapon, pushing you to think of the best strategy to proceed.
Is It Any Good?
The Swapper is a highly imaginative and thoughtful puzzle adventure. It boasts a dark, eerie atmosphere that's reminiscent of Dead Space. Players encounter mysterious stones that appear throughout space structures that deliver creepy messages, and the story is shrouded in mystery. The platforming and puzzle-solving elements seem to draw inspiration from Portal. Players use their weapon to create clones in simple ways before using the device to cleverly navigate sections of the space station, even using it almost like a teleportation weapon. Later stages even require the navigation of zero gravity with the device.
The puzzles are carefully constructed, requiring thought about how to best approach them and how to take advantages of the player's small clone army. It's an incredibly well-made game that sticks with you long after you've played it, and its heightened focus on the puzzles and the mysterious setting \ engage you from start to finish. The Swapper is one of the more intriguing puzzle games that's ever been released.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about action-based puzzle games. What makes them fun to play?
Talk about The Swapper's mysterious atmosphere. What makes some games scary? What's the appeal of scary games?
Game Details
- Platforms : PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation Vita
- Pricing structure : Paid (The game requires a one-time payment. There are no additional fees or downloadable expansions to purchase.)
- Available online? : Not available online
- Publisher : Curve Digital
- Release date : August 5, 2014
- Genre : Puzzle
- Topics : Adventures
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate