Preface:
I would be remiss if I didn't talk a little about the release of Metal Gear Survive, the first Metal Gear Solid game without the influence of game development superstar Hideo Kojima. I won't get into the whole drama between Konami and Kojima, but I will mention the initial reception. It seems lukewarm at best, and I'm not optimistic about its long-term appeal. It already requires always-online and has microtransactions that impact gameplay (such as the save slots you pay ~$10 to unlock,) and let's not forget the fans of the Kojima Era MGS games, who I can imagine already had their torches and pitchforks out for this game the second it was announced. With the future of Metal Gear Survive left uncertain, let's move on to the main event...
If you've been on YouTube for any period of time, you've probably seen some video that almost feels like a personal attack on you. It might be some news video where a major politician once again digs up the claim that violent video games cause school shootings, a jackass gleefully reinforcing that old stereotype of the ignorant American tourist, or maybe it's someone who remarks on how the Internet lets any "autistic retard" make a webcomic. For most of us, our only options involve silently seething or posting a sternly worded comment, both of which ultimately do nothing. In today's game, however, you can do something that will definitely get them to notice your anger. It's the arcade-style side-scrolling action game Octogeddon, by All Yes Good!
The story begins, as many do, with someone on a computer. Our unnamed octopus protagonist (I personally call him Kenny the Kraken.) is on YouTube watching videos, when he sees something truly shocking. The sight: a chef making octopus sushi. Despite the fact that creatures eating other creatures is a normal part of the natural world, this drives Kenny into a rage rivaled only by a superfan discovering that some highly-anticipated game (say, Super Mario Odyssey) received a 9 out of 10 in a review. Kenny then one-ups the rage of every bitter Internet troll by deciding the best way to get back is to destroy the Statue of Liberty. This sort of story repeats itself for each world: Kenny sees something anti-octopus on YouTube, and goes off to destroy a coastal landmark in retaliation.
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| OCTOPI INK GLANDS ARE NOT BLADDERS!!! LEARN BIOLOGY, NOOB!!!!!!111! - A YouTube comment left by user 'Octo88888888.' IP address: Unknown |
Each world in the game takes place over six stages, and the way you play changes slightly depending on whether you're in the first or second half. In the first half, Kenny is underwater swimming to the unlucky city that invited his wrath. You use the left and right mouse buttons (or A and D, if you like the keyboard) to rotate Kenny and attack approaching waves of enemies with his tentacles. He only starts out with two, a fact lampshaded by the game, but defeating enemies and clearing stages gives you cash. Between stages, this cash can be spent on buying more tentacles or upgrading the ones you currently have by infusing them with DNA. You could have a crab tentacle that deals more close up damage, a bee tentacle that shoots weak homing bees, or even a penguin to freeze enemies while making corny Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze jokes. Beating all three stages, as well as the boss at the end of the third stage, lets you move onto the land and cause some real destruction.
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| The real Big Boss Bass would have the eyepatch. |
The second half of each world takes place on the streets of the unlucky city, where Kenny can be rolled around with the left and right mouse buttons. Since part of Kenny is on the ground, not all of his tentacles can be used at once, which adds some strategy to the placement of your tentacles. The land stages also have you fighting off waves of enemies, but progress is made in these stages by breaking down buildings in your way. The final stage also requires you to tear down the local monument, be it the Statue of Liberty, the Sydney Opera House, or whatever, but to get to it, you have to fight off another boss, such as this bizarrely designed robot that may or may not be quoting The Butcher from the original Diablo ("Aaaah, fresh meat!")
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| "They said I was mad when I wanted to design a giant robot that fires meat cleavers! Said it would be ludicrously impractical for military purposes! Now they'll see their folly!!" - Local Mad Scientist, about a minute before his creation is destroyed. |
Unless you happen to have incredible luck and skill, you're pretty much guaranteed to wind up as the site for the world's largest seafood buffet. Luckily, there happens to be a shop accessible to you that's more than willing to sell to krakens. Here you can spend shells, another currency gained by playing the game, on permanent upgrades for future playthroughs, such as special DNA, the ability to skip to later worlds at the beginning, and more stock when buying upgrades at the lab. Shopping here enough will also have Catfish Carl the shopkeeper give you extra maximum health as thanks for your patronage. To keep the early game from becoming too repetitive and easy from these upgrades, however, the game may bring in enemies from later stages to keep Kenny on his lack of toes.
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| Fun Fact: Catfush Carl is apparently supposed to be female, if that coffee cup is anything to go by. |
If you're the observant type, the games particular cartoony aesthetic, the shop that provides in-game upgrades for a second type of currency, and the gameplay loop of using a growing pool of resources to fight off bigger waves of enemies may look and sound oddly familiar. The reason for that is because All Yes Good, the company behind this game, is fronted by George Fan, the brain behind the original Plants vs. Zombies. In all honesty, George's presence behind this game might be the main, if only, reason this octopus-themed game got noticed among the deluge of Steam games that come down the pipe and are unnoticed and/or low quality. Name recognition is a legitimate reason to take notice, however, especially when the recognition is positive due to being a sign of quality.
Since George Fan is behind the wheel, you'd expect a variety of wacky enemy designs, like the zombies in PvZ, but the basic enemies are relatively generic compared to his older works. This could obviously be considered a petty complaint stemming from the old problem of living up to or surpassing one's previous efforts, but most of the enemies are relatively uninteresting submarines and their plane counterparts for land stages. A shame given how varied and bizarre the tentacle mutations can be. I also found it odd that the game doesn't support controllers of any kind. I'm not playing something as complex as the Total War series, All Yes Good! I think a controller's analog stick or shoulder buttons could easily replace the left and right mouse buttons.
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| Tonight on Generic News Network, the American Military is in hot water after utilizing nuclear weaponry in New York City, irradiating the New England area and parts of Canada. Allegations of a Canadian diplomat using a hockey stick to assault a Senator over the issue have yet to be confirmed. |
While Octogeddon isn't the amazing hit that PvZ was in the pre-EA days, it still manages to be a great homage to 80's arcade games. The game's complexity really shines through as you play through multiple times and the game changes up your enemies and tentacle options, forcing new tactics. It really puts the player into the mindset of wanting to do just one more run. The unique ideas in Octogeddon may not be as noticeable as PvZ's simple-yet-coplex formula, but it still manages to stand out decently in the Steam Marketplace, and that's a good victory in its own right.
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