The Goo that's good for you. And that's pretty rare.
Oh my lord, don't ever count on me to rebuild the world's structures should anything happen. I'm likely to be deemed the world's worst engineer.
Don't put any of those fancy designers on the either in our time of need. I need a bridge to get me from A to B, not one that makes me question my existence on the way.
I'm playing World of Goo by 2D Boy, a game where you building structures from one point to another. Sounds like game of the year material, doesn't it? If not, it's because I'm describing it poorly, so let me continue!
Yes, you build structures out of the titular goo, hoping to read your goal with enough goo mucking about that you'll meet the stage's quota and pass on to the next. So if you're given 20 goos, and need 8 to succeed, you can only build something out of 12. The challenge comes from the stage's design, because there's no way the game could let you build without throwing some obstacles in the way. Be it wind, spikes, or rotating gears, the level's are never as easy as them may appear. Most of the challenge come from building your goo towers or bridges at all. Adding some spice to this gaming gumbo is differently coloured, and therefore differently abled, goo. Green goos are able to be put into place and removed at leisure, a trait that others goos don't have. Problem is, if you need to remove a green goo, you better hope it wasn't a load bearing one.
World of Goo is a real charmer. If it's visuals don't grape you by the hair and demand kisses, then it comes down to the gameplay, so you're damned no matter what. I've probably retried stages in this game more than any other, and it's hard to explain what it is that appeals to me. I've given up much faster on easier games, but there's something about building a disaster that compels you to press on. I've gotten to the top of a stage only to be one short of meeting the quota, and I quite happily started over. I never got that one frustrating mission you can't stand, akin to Notorious Level A from any of the Grand Theft Auto games.
I believe I saw in an interview with the creators that they formerly worked for EA. Say what you will about that big, evil, demon-baby of a company, but they know how to make good games. When you play Dead Space, the polish gleens like store's shoe section. I find that same polish in World of Goo. It's just so well constructed and paced. Strewn throughout the levels are signs from the Signmaker, which almost feels like the developer's disembodied "voice". The signs often crack wise, and othertimes go on about something irrelevent. As well, all the goo balls you collect are stored at the World of Goo corporation. Here you can manipulate your goo to build a tower as high as the heavens, a sort of leaderboard you construct yourself. No matter how high I got a cloud bearing the name and nationality of someone who's done just a little better floats by. Aggrevating stuff, but it pushes me further.
So yeah, despite a looming recession, spend $15 (WiiWare) or even $20 (PC) and be the better for it. That meal at East Side Marios can wait. You've got much more important things to do.
Oh man I lmbo'd so hard when I saw the title and that picture immediately after. Well played.
Such an enjoyable game, I'm going through and OCD'ing each level now. Or trying to D:
Posted by: Brian Belida | October 28, 2008 at 12:20 AM