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Untitled Goose Game review thread

Bullet Club

Member
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Gamespot: 8/10
The important thing is that Untitled Goose Game is a hoot. It's a comedy game that focuses on making the act of playing it funny, rather than simply being a game that features jokes. Wishing that it was longer speaks to how much fun I had with it. There's nothing else quite like Untitled Goose Game; it's charming and cute despite being mean, and both very silly and very clever. It's also probably the best non-racing game ever to feature a dedicated "honk" button.


IGN: 8/10
Video games have made me a god, a superhero, and a savior of planets, but rarely have I felt more powerful than in Untitled Goose Game. Being given control of this feathered menace and armed with a checklist of hilarious, dickish tasks to complete is some of the most fun I’ve had with a game all year. My only real complaint is its fairly short runtime – I would have gladly spent hours longer goosing around. But even still, the charming design of its world and the clever challenges within it had me laughing, smiling, and eagerly honking the whole way through.


Destructoid: 8.5/10
It may be brief, but Untitled Goose Game is worth taking a gander at. With its clever puzzle structure, charming art direction, and a soundtrack rife with Gershwin influence, it's an absolutely grand way to spend an afternoon.


DualShockers: 7/10
I’m somewhat reluctant to stick by all of my larger criticisms because perhaps the game that I was expecting and wanting simply wasn’t the same game that House House was aiming to make. But after being presented with all of these tools in a fun world, I just kept imagining how much farther and funnier this concept could have gone. I’m always thankful for relatively shorter game experiences, but I’d love to see more goose hijinx from these developers in the future. Take the openness of Goat Simulator but remove the memes, take the versatility of Hitman but remove the murder, and absolutely keep the fun aesthetic and sounds of Untitled Goose Game that made it unique.


Nintendo Life: 8/10
Untitled Goose Game boasts more inventiveness, creativity and charm than the vast majority of titles on the Switch eShop, and offers a believable game world that's a real pleasure to explore, investigate and – of course – cause merry havoc in. Superb physics, excellent controls, surprisingly robust AI and unique presentation all combine to make this a real highlight in the Switch's library – it's only the brevity of the experience that lets it down, but this really is a case of quality over quantity.


Vooks: 4.5/5
Untitled Goose Game is a well-crafted hijinks simulator which captures whimsical misadventures of a bird just being a real prick for no real reason. While the game is short, it fits nicely on the ‘doesn’t overstay its welcome’ shelf, meaning it’s simple to play through in an evening. Mechanics are easy to learn (button inputs can be customised) and the stealth is light on strategy. But what’s ultimately delivered is a neat little package of an open sandbox where you can run amok without consequences to great, maniacal effect.


Ars Technica: Approved
Verdict: Honk! Ahem, I mean, buy.


RPS
Still, brief as it may be, Untitled Goose Game leaves a lasting impression – much like the geese of my youth. Our honk-meister general is a devious and thrilling villain to behold, and the level of detail that’s been poured into each of his hapless victims only serves to make them all the more endearing when you come flying in and take a giant dump on their perfectly ordered lives. It’s also finally given me the answer to my age-old question about what the deal with geese is. They are, in short, horrible, and there’s nothing you can do to stop them.


The Verge
Compared to something like Goat Simulator, there’s no disorienting chaos or points assigned to how hard you can head-butt people. Instead, you drive them crazy with the gentlest of pranks, like making a boy (lovingly cast as “Wimp” in the credits) put on glasses that are not his. Untitled Goose Game lets you fall into the calming, pleasant escapism of an Animal Crossing game, where there are no real stakes — just the absolute freedom to be an animal that doesn’t have to answer to any consequences.




 
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Punished Miku

Gold Member
Sounds great. But $14.99 for 2 hours is ridiculous.

I might have to get it anyway .... undecided.
 
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SLoWMoTIoN

Unconfirmed Member
High budget movie, great screen and sound vs ugly little indeh game made by le tumblr that you'll forget about in a week
You playing in the dark comfortable and drunk vs going to the movies and paying 20 dollars for the great experience. Which is people clapping like retards, being loud, people not shutting the fuck up for 1.5 hours, eating like pigs loudly and being retards at superhero film # 59.



thinking_azusa-800107.jpg

Gee even playing indie trash sounds better don't you think so Azusa chan?
 
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Punished Miku

Gold Member
Guess we should have a review thread for that one as well.
If you want! I watched some reviews and what got me is that they also put the OST on Apple Music on release day. And the music seems damn good. It's basically just mild gameplay to compliment a full album worth of music. I have purchased CDs for $13 so I went ahead and got it, and I have the OST on streaming too, so I hope it's fun. The videos look pretty sick.
 

garballax

Member
This game looks so fun. I just wish they didn’t go the epic exclusive route on PC.
fortunately it's just a timed exclusive so we'll get it eventually. i wonder if we'll get a limited run games physical version on switch (assuming that happens) before it's out on steam.
 

Meesh

Member
I'm so drawn to the idea of being a dick in a video game at times, just to let off a little steam from the daily grind perhaps. And really what better way to be a dick, than to be a goose whose very nature is undoubtedly rooted in some dickishnes.

Without playing the game yet I'd like to throw out there that it's a missed opportunity not to be able to play as the Canadian Goose. I think it would be hilarious to run around like a little feathered ass hat, intentionally fucking with the universe and apologetically running away to the next victim.
 
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hariseldon

Unconfirmed Member
This game looks so fun. I just wish they didn’t go the epic exclusive route on PC.

Same, I was genuinely interested in it but hadn’t realised they were going down this route. I guess I might get it when it comes out on other stores but by then maybe I won’t care anymore about the game.
 
I can totally agree! Great game even though so simple by its concept. Full of creativity and makes me feel relaxed playing "Untitled Goose Game"
 

Scopa

The Tribe Has Spoken
Probably going to cop some hate for this opinion, but I’ve learned to avoid games like this like the plague.

Let me explain:

- Overnight indie darling.
- 1-4 hours long.
- Overpriced for what it is.
- Being hailed as the greatest thing since sliced bread by all and sundry in the games media, particularly by outlets I avoid.

I’ve learned from experience that when I see the above, the game is always a massive disappointment and those same journos praising it can barely manage a “meh” 6 months down the track when they admit they stopped playing it after a few days.
 

Saruhashi

Banned
Probably going to cop some hate for this opinion, but I’ve learned to avoid games like this like the plague.

Let me explain:

- Overnight indie darling.
- 1-4 hours long.
- Overpriced for what it is.
- Being hailed as the greatest thing since sliced bread by all and sundry in the games media, particularly by outlets I avoid.

I’ve learned from experience that when I see the above, the game is always a massive disappointment and those same journos praising it can barely manage a “meh” 6 months down the track when they admit they stopped playing it after a few days.

The game is definitely fun. I can say that for sure.

It IS short however but for me personally this is not a black mark against any game.
15 bucks for a few hours is fine by me. I spend more going to a movie or a concert.

It's not exactly a life changing or masterpiece game though. It's just good fun for a few hours.

I tend to think that this kind of game is a perfect "games journalist" game.
It's short so they can probably finish the game and crank out a review really quickly.
The difficulty is low and the pace is laid back. So they don't struggle with it or have to learn complex mechanics.
It's quirky so it means they can maybe even squeeze out a few viral "hilarious" tweets and maybe even a "think piece" or two.

I wouldn't hold any of that against the game though. It's creative and fun and worth playing. In my opinion.
 

Big-ass Ramp

hella bullets that's true
This game has been on my radar for a while, so I'm excited to play it. The thing that shocks me is what a hit the game seems to be. I don't know the sales numbers, but it seems quite popular on social media.
 

Katsura

Member
Probably going to cop some hate for this opinion, but I’ve learned to avoid games like this like the plague.

Let me explain:

- Overnight indie darling.
- 1-4 hours long.
- Overpriced for what it is.
- Being hailed as the greatest thing since sliced bread by all and sundry in the games media, particularly by outlets I avoid.

I’ve learned from experience that when I see the above, the game is always a massive disappointment and those same journos praising it can barely manage a “meh” 6 months down the track when they admit they stopped playing it after a few days.
I agree completely. This has review bait written all over it and i'm not paying 15$ for a game i can complete in a couple of hours. It looks like a fun concept though and if they add more content i might grab it on sale
 
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Shrap

Member
Probably going to cop some hate for this opinion, but I’ve learned to avoid games like this like the plague.

Let me explain:

- Overnight indie darling.
- 1-4 hours long.
- Overpriced for what it is.
- Being hailed as the greatest thing since sliced bread by all and sundry in the games media, particularly by outlets I avoid.

I’ve learned from experience that when I see the above, the game is always a massive disappointment and those same journos praising it can barely manage a “meh” 6 months down the track when they admit they stopped playing it after a few days.
It looks a hell of a lot better than Gone Home at least. I doubt anything will ever top the circlejerk the games media had over that pile of dried up excrement.
 

zenspider

Member
I like the reactive distrust and skepticism of the media in this thread, I just wish it was applied at the sectors of the hobby that really deserve it.

"I would have liked to be a goose for more hours" seems to be the complaint, but we're attacking a whole swath of games in a price point that - for the most part - deliver on the WYSIWYG promise on the box.

Why go after the "indie darlings" when there's games asking for a lot more time and money and delivering a lot less, and much of that with attempts at monetizing psychological hooks.
 

Katsura

Member
I like the reactive distrust and skepticism of the media in this thread, I just wish it was applied at the sectors of the hobby that really deserve it.

"I would have liked to be a goose for more hours" seems to be the complaint, but we're attacking a whole swath of games in a price point that - for the most part - deliver on the WYSIWYG promise on the box.

Why go after the "indie darlings" when there's games asking for a lot more time and money and delivering a lot less, and much of that with attempts at monetizing psychological hooks.
Who says we aren't? It is possible to go after both indie and AAA games at the same time. Not really sure what you mean with the bolded part because complaining about it being short does not equate attacking it for being dishonest about it's length. I can only speak for myself but since i never bought into the games as art thing, i stick by a simple rule of thumb - I expect 1 hour of gameplay pr dollar spent. That's on top of great gameplay obviously which is why i've ignored most AAA games, cinematic games in particular
 
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Scopa

The Tribe Has Spoken
Why go after the "indie darlings" when there's games asking for a lot more time and money and delivering a lot less, and much of that with attempts at monetizing psychological hooks.
I also don’t buy ‘games as a service’ games. I avoid all video games that I find pointless.

Also, what does WYSIWYG mean?
 

zenspider

Member
Who says we aren't? It is possible to go after both indie and AAA games at the same time. Not really sure what you mean with the bolded part because complaining about it being short does not equate attacking it for being dishonest about it's length. I can only speak for myself but since i never bought into the games as art thing, i stick by a simple rule of thumb - I expect 1 hour of gameplay pr dollar spent. That's on top of great gameplay obviously which is why i've ignored most AAA games, cinematic games in particular

Maybe I'm confused... did they say anthing about the length of the game beforehand? I don't understand the beef. Was anyone expecting a 20+hours campaign here?

I get your value proposition, but that's going to cut you out of a lot of great games - at least until sales hit and meet your flat rate.

I think a movie ticket is a fine exchange rate for certain genres, especially in the indie scene where we wouldn't get these distilled experiences any other way - Katana ZERO, Inside, Gorgoa, etc, are all 5 or less hours long, would all be worse if they were longer, and all worth the day 1 asking price.

I have no interest in UGG, but completion length is a strange place to be critical for a sub-20 dollar game.

Also, what does WYSIWYG mean?

What you see is what you get.
 

Katsura

Member
Maybe I'm confused... did they say anthing about the length of the game beforehand? I don't understand the beef. Was anyone expecting a 20+hours campaign here?

I get your value proposition, but that's going to cut you out of a lot of great games - at least until sales hit and meet your flat rate.

I think a movie ticket is a fine exchange rate for certain genres, especially in the indie scene where we wouldn't get these distilled experiences any other way - Katana ZERO, Inside, Gorgoa, etc, are all 5 or less hours long, would all be worse if they were longer, and all worth the day 1 asking price.

I have no interest in UGG, but completion length is a strange place to be critical for a sub-20 dollar game.



What you see is what you get.
I have no idea if they said anything about the games length pre release but again, no one is accusing them of lying about it. I'm simply saying that i'm not paying 15 dollars for a 2 hour game. As for the movie tickets, sure that's a valid way to look at it for some people but personally i wouldn't pay to go see a movie. At best, i'd rent it but usually i will just wait for it to hit various streaming services. Katana Zero was too short in my opinion. However, the excellent gameplay compensates for that and i will play through it again. Also, if you go for 100% you'd definitely hit my flat rate. So far i have yet to see a game that warrants breaking my rule for. The bolded part makes zero sense. Why do the rules change if a game cost less than 20 dollars? Who set that limit?

If you want to pay 15 dollars for a 2 hour game, be my guest. I'm not going to judge you or attack you for it. You seem to have an issue with me not wanting to (over)pay for a such game though
 
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zenspider

Member
I have no idea if they said anything about the games length pre release but again, no one is accusing them of lying about it. I'm simply saying that i'm not paying 15 dollars for a 2 hour game. As for the movie tickets, sure that's a valid way to look at it for some people but personally i wouldn't pay to go see a movie. At best, i'd rent it but usually i will just wait for it to hit various streaming services. Katana Zero was too short in my opinion. However, the excellent gameplay compensates for that and i will play through it again. Also, if you go for 100% you'd definitely hit my flat rate. So far i have yet to see a game that warrants breaking my rule for. The bolded part makes zero sense. Why do the rules change if a game cost less than 20 dollars? Who set that limit?

If you want to pay 15 dollars for a 2 hour game, be my guest. I'm not going to judge you or attack you for it. You seem to have an issue with me not wanting to (over)pay for a such game though

I'm probably coming off more annoyed than I really am here. I just don't think your rule of thumb should be levied as a criticism of the game itself, or of shorter experiences in general.

I don't think dissimilarly to you - I just let it scale to the hobby, i.e. every game like, say, Splatoon 2 that gets me 700 hours (0.085$/hr) pays for all the less value-saavy, but worthwhile experiences, and the busts.

Then there's the replayability factor loke you mentioned- it seems we're both going to go back to Katana ZERO, and I think it's brief playtime adds to the value there. If there were 5 more hours of padding, I don't think I'd want to revisit.
 

rofif

Can’t Git Gud
Game length is a non issue for me. Limbo, inside, Gone home and some other golden age XBLA games were all worth their money perfectly fine despite being short. It's just that there is so much crap nowadays, it is difficult to recognize good indie games from the crowd.
 

Katsura

Member
I'm probably coming off more annoyed than I really am here. I just don't think your rule of thumb should be levied as a criticism of the game itself, or of shorter experiences in general.

I don't think dissimilarly to you - I just let it scale to the hobby, i.e. every game like, say, Splatoon 2 that gets me 700 hours (0.085$/hr) pays for all the less value-saavy, but worthwhile experiences, and the busts.

Then there's the replayability factor loke you mentioned- it seems we're both going to go back to Katana ZERO, and I think it's brief playtime adds to the value there. If there were 5 more hours of padding, I don't think I'd want to revisit.
Nah man, you're not coming off annoyed and i didn't mean to imply it

As for the length and the resulting criticism, here is how i see it - for me, the length of a game is an important factor. As such, it will be a very deciding factor in whether i buy a game or not, thus it is a relevant criticism for me. Is it a relevant criticism for anyone else? That depends entirely on your perspective. Some people are happy to pay for a one hour walking simulator and to them it's completely irrelevant. That's ok. So while it may not be relevant to you, it is relevant to me

I seriously doubt you could name one game i've missed because of my rule that i would have enjoyed. For me, gameplay is king. It is the most important aspect by far and the games i reject because of my rule are usually preachy walking simulators or pretentious puzzle-lite games. Gone Home, Monument Valley and Firewatch are great examples of the kind of game i actively avoid. Arcade games would not fall under my rule since they have crazy replay value

All that being said, i actually really like your rule and it's definitely an interesting perspective i hadn't thought of
 
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hariseldon

Unconfirmed Member
Personally I don't mind a game being short - I determine value based on the game being enjoyable or having an emotional impact or whatever. Indeed, as I get older and have less free time I do find that some games do tend to last a bit too damn long (though this year I've been on an RPG kick so that's self-inflicted).
 

zenspider

Member
Nah man, you're not coming off annoyed and i didn't mean to imply it

As for the length and the resulting criticism, here is how i see it - for me, the length of a game is an important factor. As such, it will be a very deciding factor in whether i buy a game or not, thus it is a relevant criticism for me. Is it a relevant criticism for anyone else? That depends entirely on your perspective. Some people are happy to pay for a one hour walking simulator and to them it's completely irrelevant. That's ok. So while it may not be relevant to you, it is relevant to me

I seriously doubt you could name one game i've missed because of my rule that i would have enjoyed. For me, gameplay is king. It is the most important aspect by far and the games i reject because of my rule are usually preachy walking simulators or pretentious puzzle-lite games. Gone Home, Monument Valley and Firewatch are great examples of the kind of game i actively avoid. Arcade games would not fall under my rule since they have crazy replay value

All that being said, i actually really like your rule and it's definitely an interesting perspective i hadn't thought of

Gameplay is king indeed! (and "Content" is for bedwetters).
I bet if we diff-ed our libraries (and I crossed out every game I got burnt on) that would be the list we could talk about. Our taste seems aligned, and I think the difference would be the "arcade" style of content via mastery.

I think the best game to discuss for this is Vanquish.

Here's a game that has the goods in the gameplay department, liberal "AAA" setpiece and spectacle, zero fat on the bone, and a layer of depth that is not obvious until the end.

On paper, it's a "6 hour" game, but it has a proper game-ass game trajectory of about 20 hours. If you fall in love, you could get 50+ experimenting with different paths and techniques to mastery.

I like Vanquish as posterboy becuase it absolutely belongs in that AAA space and pricepoint - it's literally commentary on the zeitgiest of the era - and as such is taken to task for it's length from 'Start Game' to 'Credits'. It's not the truth though. The game doesn't say you're done - in my mind it's the "editor's voice" saying you're done and to move on to the next game to review for deadline.

I'm wondering:
1) What do you think of that paragraph of nonsense? Agree? Disagree? Tl;dr

2) How do not miss these games, if the headline chatter is all "short campaign"?

3) What do you think of the idea of "support"? Like, I pay the day 1 premium because I want more games like Vanquish. That support failed, obviously, and most TPS games are still Gears clones with different lipsticks on. It's an idealism, and you're probably smart to avoid the tax, but what do you think of the idea of 'the stingy gamer with good taste' being a major culprit of the stagnation of the $59.99 game?
 

Katsura

Member
Gameplay is king indeed! (and "Content" is for bedwetters).
I bet if we diff-ed our libraries (and I crossed out every game I got burnt on) that would be the list we could talk about. Our taste seems aligned, and I think the difference would be the "arcade" style of content via mastery.

I think the best game to discuss for this is Vanquish.

Here's a game that has the goods in the gameplay department, liberal "AAA" setpiece and spectacle, zero fat on the bone, and a layer of depth that is not obvious until the end.

On paper, it's a "6 hour" game, but it has a proper game-ass game trajectory of about 20 hours. If you fall in love, you could get 50+ experimenting with different paths and techniques to mastery.

I like Vanquish as posterboy becuase it absolutely belongs in that AAA space and pricepoint - it's literally commentary on the zeitgiest of the era - and as such is taken to task for it's length from 'Start Game' to 'Credits'. It's not the truth though. The game doesn't say you're done - in my mind it's the "editor's voice" saying you're done and to move on to the next game to review for deadline.

I'm wondering:
1) What do you think of that paragraph of nonsense? Agree? Disagree? Tl;dr

2) How do not miss these games, if the headline chatter is all "short campaign"?

3) What do you think of the idea of "support"? Like, I pay the day 1 premium because I want more games like Vanquish. That support failed, obviously, and most TPS games are still Gears clones with different lipsticks on. It's an idealism, and you're probably smart to avoid the tax, but what do you think of the idea of 'the stingy gamer with good taste' being a major culprit of the stagnation of the $59.99 game?
1 - I've never played Vanquish sadly but if you can potentially get 50 hours out of it despite it being a short game, then it's fine in my book. Usually, i'm ok with shorter games at a high price point if they have a new game+ or are high score chasers or have such great gameplay that you'd play them again and again. Untitled Goose game does not strike me as a game that have any of those though

2 - I like to think i do my research properly. First stop is Steam user reviews and forums if they exist, if not then a subreddit. Next up would be gameplay videos. Finally i check the hltb website at which point i usually feel like i can make an informed decision. It also depends on the genre. If it's a sports game, i know i will get my moneys worth as long as the gameplay is good

3 - So i look at it differently. In your example, i'm sure my research would have resulted in me knowing that despite it's short length, there would be a lot of replay value and i would have no issue paying for it. In the case of Untitled Goose game, while it's a novel idea it's not one i would over pay for because i want more of it. I had no issue for paying even more for games back in the C64 or Sega Master System era but something changed right around the first Call of Duty MW. I loved CoD 1 and 2. Long, fun single player campaigns which were replaced with 4-6 hour campaigns and a multi player mode i have no interest in. Lots of other games followed suit. Then, once we got game engines that enabled anyone to make a game, we started seeing walking simulators and extremely short artsy games. Those i have zero interest in. That's why i started using my rule of thumb and i feel like it weeds out all the games i don't want to pay for. So far, i'm not aware of any fantastic games i've missed because of it though i'm not ruling out the possibility but that's a small price to pay. I learned my lesson when Gone Home got GOTY and perfect scores from gaming blogs and i'd rather miss out on the occasional game than pay for something like that again

All that being said, i do see your point because you'll often see people saying they'll wait on a sale and that does hurt niche games which struggle to break even. Still, i feel like the market corrects itself and sometimes we have to accept that our taste does not match what the majority wants. I'd love for 20+ hours FPS campaigns to make a comeback but i highly doubt that will happen. At least with AAA shooters. Similarly, i'd like to see less cookie cutter open world checklist games but as long as they sell, i can't really blame Ubisoft for making them. I just look elsewhere and fortunately there are a lot of AA and indie games that cater more to my taste
 
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