![]() ![]() ![]() The gameplay itself is excellent with the movement system feeling very fluid and the platforming feeling smooth as silk, absolute no lag or missed jumps here, it works perfectly every time and reacts instantly to your button inputs. This progression keeps you working towards new upgrades all while visiting new areas of the map to solve puzzles and fight enemies, this loop is done brilliantly and is paced perfectly keeping you entertained with each path you choose to take. Collectible materials found in the world allow you to upgrade your character with powerful new abilities and boosts meaning it pays to explore that little bit between main quest lines and get rewarded. It's an action adventure game that has you land on an unexplored planet and search for resources all while fighting back "The Gunk" a dark matter that seems to be sentient. But The Gunk really surprised me and had me totally hooked for the 5 1/2 hours I played it. I'm not usually a fan of smaller indie games and specifically I'm not a fan of 'platforming' elements as I find most of them to be very suspect when it comes to consistency and correctly implemented game mechanics. The Gunk is a perfect example of a developer that can make tired mechanical tropes sing with master craftmanship.Without Gamepass I wouldn't have discovered this little gem of a game. ![]() Personally, I would prefer a game to not outstay its welcome, and sometimes, very rarely, being a stellar execution of well trod ideas is enough. Is it fair to criticise a game for being too streamlined? Does it make sense to dock a score based on the fact that it does nothing new, but everything it does is great? I found myself done with the entire game in 5 hours with no reason to revisit. Due to the focus on forward motion of the main game, there isn’t a lot for people to explore outside of that. The mechanics around sucking up the gunk doesn’t really add to the game and the puzzles themselves are enjoyable but very basic. While being exceptionally executed, the game does very little to make itself stand out. The problems with The Gunk are strangely staid. Everything in this game looks tangible, the textures throughout gives every surface a sense of palpability, almost as if you could drag your fingers over them and feel the pores. The world looks incredible too, the alien world contrasts the deadened grays of the gunk’s control with the colour of flourishing life. ![]() It is a testament to the whole team by how little I fumbled or got lost while playing The Gunk – it made me think I was exceptionally good at 3D platforming. I felt fully in control in every moment and the craft that the devs have applied here is stunningly good. There is also light combat that involves absorbing more mobile enemies and dodging incoming attacks.Īll of the action is slick, Thunderful once again lend their hand to smoothing out every jump, shot, and run. Rani uses her arm to clean up the gunk, scans fauna and flora, and solves simple platforming puzzles through use of seeds with different abilities. This is played out in a third-person perspective, with linear progression through a large world. From there Rani tries to figure out what is happening in the world and get to the bottom of what caused the gunk. After cleaning some of it away with her prosthetic arm, Rani witnesses the world explode into life. The two of them discover that it is sapped of its life force by a mysterious gunk. The Gunk follows Rani, a space trucker, who lands on a mysterious planet with her partner, Beck. ‘Polished’ is something I associate with them whenever they are the developers. All their Steamworld games have intuitive controls, there is a fluidity to their character’s movements, and it never feels like the player’s fault when something doesn’t work. Thunderful Games (previously Image & Form Games) have a talent for making games that feel good to play. ![]()
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