Violent games can be a ton of fun. Averting an alien invasion and tracking down terrorists are just two options available from the safety of your couch. While those games can be rewarding, they are often upsetting too. That is why a ‘Untitled Goose Game’ is having such a big positive impact on me.
‘Untitled Goose Game’ is the title of a game about a goose, who is kind of a jerk. The goose starts out by immediately causing havoc in a small European town filled with humans to torment. The game then presents you with a list of tasks to make the lives of those people tougher. The tasks start out relatively simple, with goals like locking a groundskeeper out of his garden. Quickly, things escalate until you are trapping a small child in a phone booth. The game also gives the titular goose more extravagant ambitions. Those can include things like putting together a picnic, going shopping, or getting on television.
The art design of this game is worth noting, as it is wonderfully charming. The relatively low polygon count may look simple at first, but calling it such would be unfair. The environments are full of things to interact with, and each person you meet has their own unique personality that adds to the flavor. The goose’s animations also make it enjoyable to just waddle around the town’s parks and streets, or smoothly glide through its various waterways. Further, honking at people is now one of my favorite ‘A-button’ commands/prompts.
My favorite moment of the game comes at the very end. I won’t spoil the conclusion here, but I will say It only took a couple of hours to reach. New objectives are revealed after credits roll, giving you plenty more to do even after the game is finished. ‘Untitled Goose Game’ is a fun romp that does not force the player to think twice about the consequences of actions. The goose cannot be killed, there is no score that you need to beat, and there is no game over screen. It was also fun to play in front of my whole family, who all got some good laughs out of the goose’s antics.
I’m happy to say this is just one of several games to prove violence is not key to having fun. ‘The Witness‘ is a remarkable puzzle game akin to Myst, with somehow even less confrontation. ‘Kind Words‘ is a one of a kind experience that shows how rewarding being nice to others can be. I would love to do another write up of ‘Kind Words’ someday. For now, I will end by encouraging you to check it out if you ever need a pick-me-up.
‘Untitled Goose Game’ is available on Switch and PC for twenty dollars. You can find more reviews from All Nerds Allowed here. You are also welcome to check out some of our videos, which include playthroughs of several other video games.