The Isle of BIGsnax DLC premiered on April 28th and offered new quests, new character development, and most excitingly, new Bugsnax.
Bugsnax took the gaming world by storm when it was revealed to be one of the PlayStation 5 launch titles. Its Muppet-like characters and adorable art design made it seem like a simple children's puzzle game, but as more information came out, some darker elements and themes revealed themselves.
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Gamers loved Bugsnax. Because it was such a hit, the developer Young Horses announced a DLC would be available in early 2022. The Isle of BIGsnax DLC premiered on April 28th as a free downloaded update to the base game. It came with new quests, new character development, and most excitingly, new Bugsnax.
This article contains spoilers for The Isle of BIGsnax DLC including capture methods and hidden secrets.
Since all the Snax on Broken Tooth Island are as large as the bosses from Snaktooth Island, the boss from Broken Tooth has some pretty big shoes to fill. Unfortunately, the complexities of the fight against Cheddaboardle Rex incorporated just a bit too much — with four different phases to solve and limited indications on how to do so. In order to shrink and capture Cheddaboardle Rex, the player must break its glass covering using its accompanying Cheddorbs, the enlarged Buggy Ball, and the temple's mechanisms.
Before meeting their first Deviled Eggler, players must first break open their shells. The massive statue in the middle of the water-filled crater has an oversized egg cup sitting at its feet. Once an egg is inside the cup, the statue will free the elusive Deviled Eggler, a flying Bugsnak resembling a deviled egg set ablaze.
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Deviled Eggler is a witty play on the existing Eggler — adding fire and flight — but its design is strange. Its hard-boiled white wings and attached shell lend it an odd appearance which resembles spaceships more than food or living creatures.
Lurking in the tree tops of Broken Tooth Island, the Spaghider is a worthy opponent. This elusive Snak arachnid is one of the more complex catches from Broken Tooth. Players must get it to the ground, shrink it, and then trap it. The Spaghider's propensity to hang around other, more aggressive Snax can make this process even more elaborate, as they will not hesitate to interfere. Despite this, Spaghider is a clever addition to the Snax roster, boasting a delightful design all gamers can enjoy. It's a spider comprised of sauced-noodle limbs and a meatball torso that uses its noodles to pull prey up to its level.
In the tradition of multiple Snax acting as one, Millimochi is made up of three connected units. They resemble Japanese mochi, sticky rice-flour buns filled with ice cream. Millimochi will excitedly rush any Grumpuses or Bugsnax when they're nearby and freeze them solid. Although gamers must neutralize the Millimochi's temperature before they can be caught, it's not terribly complex to do so. The Millimochi are sweet, round friends who just need some warming up before others can get close to them.
Named for the Indian dish Tikka Masala, this winged Snak makes slow patrols through Broken Tooth, setting anything in its path aflame with just a touch. Once identified, the Tikkada Masala provides a unique addition to the Bugapedia based on a cultural food, but its visual appearance leaves something to be desired. At first glance, the Tikkada could be any spicy food accompanied by flat bread. This particular Bugsnak could have benefited from more visible identifying characteristics, but overall is a lively Snak whose presence benefits the atmosphere of the island.
The Clawbsteroni is an amalgamation of several types of pasta in the form of a lobster. Throughout Broken Tooth Island they carry large trampolines that help the player navigate the landscape. They can be directed to different paths with cheese or hot sauce as it adores both condiments.
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Clawbsteroni can even be led to abandoned trampolines on other parts of the island, at which point it will pick the trampoline up and begin carrying it around. Additionally, both their facial expression and audio cue are extremely charming, leading them to be among player favorites.
Upon seeing Cellystix, many players have joyfully discovered its resemblance to the classic childhood snack "ants on a log." True to form, Cellystix is a massive stick bug made of celery sticks. Its torso is filled with peanut butter and topped with chocolate drops that turn into Chocolants — which Cellystix is very protective of. If any small Chocolants are on the ground nearby, Cellystix will become aggressive to the player and other snacks until all the ants have returned to their places on its back.
Made of three delicious-looking chocolate drops, the Chocolant is an integral part of gamers' journey through Broken Tooth Island. They occupy several Buggy Ball mazes, acting as an obstacle for Sprout to evade, and interact with other Snax in interesting ways. Their chocolate body and legs look so smooth, like the player could just reach through the screen and take a bite. Each segment of the ant's body is a different type of chocolate: white, milk, and dark. These Bugsnax aren't aggressive to players and will simply wander around in circles muttering their name if unprovoked.
Though there were many Snax to choose from, the developers were correct to choose the Bunger Royale to be the advertising face of the Isle of BIGsnax DLC. Fans of the game were already in love with the smaller Bungers and their jovial audio bites. Scaling up to a super-sized Bunger did not disappoint.
This massive meaty Snak with double-layered patties and tater tot extremities enjoys chasing and tackling the player as a form of amusement. It's friendly and joyful in nature, making it an excellent choice to showcase what the new game content has to offer.
While some multi-step capture methods in Bugsnax can drag on, making the gameplay feel clunky, others make their particular Snak feel like an enjoyable challenge. The Pielobite is one of the latter. Appearing as a pecan pie in a metal pie tin with a plastic lid, like one would find in the grocery store, Pielobite must be stripped of its armor before it can be properly caught. There are several tabs around the edge of Pielobite's lid that can be removed with the Snakgrappler. Although every time that happens the Pielobite will run to a different area of Broken Tooth out of fear, forcing players to pursue.
In its larger form, Cheddorb really doesn't care about anything around it. Several Bugsnax could be fighting, frozen, or on fire, and the Cheddorb would just roll right on through, happily chanting its name.
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This Snak's presence on the island is almost like that of a friend to the player, as every few seconds it will cycle through and announce itself, never stopping for anything. Cheddorb is also one of the easiest Snaks to catch on Broken Tooth, as it only needs to be shrunk down and trapped.
On Broken Tooth Island, players can unlock a strange triangular key. This key leads to a secret place back on Snaktooth called The Triplicate Space. This area is chock-full of secrets and lore, hidden behind intricate puzzles. The last element players can find in the Triplicate Space is one final Snak: the Cappucceetle. According to its previous companion, this java scarab is the fastest Snak alive. Each time the Cappucceetle spots the player, they will dart off to a random region of Snaktooth Island, where gamers must hunt them down once more.
Rebekah Krum is an avid fan of both video and tabletop games; she takes great interest in their history and cultural value as storytelling mediums. They enjoy a good story, regardless of the method by which it is told. She grew up in Northeastern Nevada before moving to Ashland, Oregon for college in 2014 and subsequently settling down just outside of Portland, Oregon in 2019. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing from Southern Oregon University.