Garfield: Escape From Monday Review - Garfield’s Best Game

I Can Hardly Believe It, But Garfield: Escape From Monday Is A Surprisingly Solid Platformer Published Sep 22, 2026, 11:00 AM EDT George is the Lead News Editor for TheGamer, and has been working in the industry since 2021 after graduating from the University of South Wales with a bachelor's degree in Journalism. He has also previously written for RPG Site, WhatCulture, and PlayStation Lifestyle. George is an expert on platformers, action games, and fighters, but tends to play as many releases as possible. This hands-on experience lets him dive into gaming communities and follow the latest trends. Some of the games George has extensively covered first-hand include Dead Rising, Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, Assassin's Creed Shadows, and Ninja Gaiden 4. I’m going to start this review of the latest licensed Garfield game with a blisteringly hot take that I hope my fellow platformer freaks don’t crucify me for - Garfield: Escape From Monday has better core movement mechanics than Astro Bot. The fat cat’s roly-poly move that lets you zip and dive around levels combines with a gravity-defying air attack that provides a shocking amount of expressive free-form platforming. That’s right, Escape From Monday has schmoovement, the one thing anyone could ever criticise Astro Bot for lacking. That sobering and somewhat left-field comparison to one of the most beloved platformers in recent memory popped into my head early in my playthrough, and refused to leave even as I hit credits a surprising amount of time later. I really didn’t expect much from a Garfield game, which left plenty of room for Escape From Monday’s to impress me. Don’t get me wrong, most other aspects of Garfield’s latest gaming outing don’t hold a candle to pretty much any other 3D platformer (let alone Astro Bot), and it ends up as a good, but not great, overall package. But the strengths that do emerge and show a surprising understanding of what makes a platformer tick still ensure Escape From Monday is easily the best Garfield game out there. A low bar, I know, but it’s true. Escape From Monday Has Garfield’s Spirit, But Butchers His Voice Garfield: Escape From Monday sees the painfully real orange tabby stuck in a nightmare world of vegetables and healthy food after but a taste of Chef Monday’s low-key kinda nice-sounding spinach lasagne. It’s a typically simple platforming setup, but one that lets Garfield jump around some fun food-themed worlds and interact with a bunch of series staples, from Jon and Liz to Nermal and Arlene. As a lifelong reader of Jim Davis’ comics, there’s a clear understanding of the series’ vibes that shines through in the sardonic, dry, and referential dialogue, with Garf and friends somehow knowing he’s stuck in both a video game and a nightmare. There are also plenty of nods to Garfield tradition, from sarcastic signs to one of the core moves being the kick that Odie is all too familiar with. Escape From Monday is so close to hitting a home run in the Garfield aura department, but falls short when it comes to a very important part - the star of the show’s voice. Garfield is whiny, high-pitched, and uncharacteristically full of life, making most of his otherwise well-written dialogue sound flat-out wrong. It’s a shame, since everyone else, especially the GOAT Jon, is played well, but the one character who needed to be done justice is completely miscast. I know Frank Welker is tough to beat, but come on. Even With Generic Level Design, Garfield Feels Great To Play If you can get past Garfield’s voice sounding like nails on a chalkboard, Escape From Monday’s gameplay makes up for it. The nightmare is split into three food-themed worlds, each with its own set of main levels, optional challenge stages, and a bunch of hidden lasagne for Garfield to find and chow down on. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but it’s also a simple setup that feels right at home with the series, What really makes Escape From Monday stand out, though, is how Garfield feels to control. The somehow-athletic fat cat’s core movement options aren’t extensive and consist of a single jump, a kick, a slam that turns into a high jump, and a roll that’s essentially your sprint, but they all flow together shockingly well. If you’re even somewhat experienced with platformers, you can turn Garfield into an orange blur that jets around levels with ease, which is endlessly satisfying. Escape From Monday’s platforming is at its best in the optional time trial mode that really shows off how much freedom you have to get around. Garfield’s core mechanics are propped up with special costumes (another nice nod to the source material and Garfield’s love of dress-up) that have unique abilities, including a turkey that can flap around in the air, a surfer that can ride the gnar and boost around, and a cowboy with a lasso move. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but they do help mix up the platforming a bit and build on the already great movement options. Sadly, there are only three of these outfits in the whole game, and they’re stuck in their specific worlds, which all end up feeling a little long in the tooth. I would have much preferred more worlds with fewer levels in them, as, despite the strong mechanical foundation, Escape From Monday is dragged down a bit by formulaic level design and a general lack of variety that creeps in as the unexpectedly long campaign drags towards the finish line. That being said, Escape From Monday clearly does enough right, as I went right back to find every lasagne, complete every time trial, and go for 100 percent. The underlying issues may prevent Garfield from having his first truly great game, but Escape From Monday still stands as one of the year’s biggest surprises for me. That’s in part due to my expectations being so low, but the satisfying platforming mechanics and near-perfect encapsulation of the Garfield vibes (barring his voice) make this a nice treat for 3D platforming fans. Give it a go, and I’m sure you’ll feel bad about pitchforking me for the Astro Bot comments. Released September 24, 2026 ESRB Everyone / Mild Fantasy Violence Developer(s) OSome Studio Publisher(s) Microids Number of Players Single-player Steam Deck Compatibility Unknown PC Release Date September 24, 2026 Xbox Series X|S Release Date September 24, 2026 PS5 Release Date September 24, 2026 Nintendo Switch Release Date September 24, 2026 Genre(s) 3D Platformer, Platformer, Adventure, Exploration Platform(s) PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S X|S Optimized Yes File Size Xbox Series 8.34 GB Pros & Cons Captures Garfield?s vibes wonderfully Core platforming mechanics are smooth and satisfying Surprising amount of levels and challenges Garfield?s voice is just wrong Level design is unremarkable Lack of variety is definitely felt by the end