This game was originally covered as part of our Nindie Round Up series that sought to give coverage to a wider breadth of Switch eShop games beyond our standard reviews. In an effort to make our impressions easier to find, we're presenting the original text below in our mini-review format.

Playing in a remarkably similar manner to the insanely popular Overcooked, you play Inertia Game Studios' Catastronauts with 1-4 players, fixing your ship after taking enemy fire and firing back to deplete their overall health before they can do the same to you. It’s a neat concept that's delivered quite well in an easy-to-understand manner and ramps up the insanity and chaos nicely, especially as more players are introduced.

Your main goals are to put out fires, reseal cracked tiles, and fire your cannons back at opposing ships, all while managing your ship's HP in addition to that of your playable character. It’s a task that’s almost impossible when playing alone; this is a multiplayer game that really relies on having at least one friend to play along with by encouraging and rewarding cooperation and quick decision-making.

The single-player option is weaker, giving you command of a second player that you can switch between easily enough, but it's maddeningly confusing and frustrating to keep track of in a coherent way. With two or more players, however, it makes for a smashingly fun party game that really gets the blood pumping as the number of hazards spread and gameplay becomes increasingly frantic. There’s also a fairly charming but basic story mode, but if you’re thinking of tackling that alone, think again. This is a multiplayer game through and through.

Presentation-wise, its style isn’t groundbreaking but is sufficiently cute and likeable. Again, it bears a resemblance to the visual style of Overcooked but with a Star Trek-inspired skin, giving you control of red shirts and alien creatures alike.

With a great concept, a responsive, sensible control layout and the option to play with up to four players, Catastronauts is highly recommended for some intensely enjoyable cooperative action.