World of Goo..d... Get it? Huh? Yeah? Too much?
World of Goo is no shrinking violet in the indie games arena. After a much ballyhoo for its appearance at the Independent Games Festival, where it was an award winner and recipient of plenty of hype, it landed a spot on Nintendo's curiously conceived WiiWare Channel, strengthening its buzz. All of this lead to one of the most anticipated indie games of all time. And how could it not? Screen shots wowed and video awed. Thankfully, the little game that could, well, did.
Two aspects of World of Goo help deliver on its skewed charm - simplistic gameplay and fleshed out aesthetic.
The gameplay is a matter of creation. A strong and consistent physics engine allows the player to maneuver goo balls, a rubber form of tinker toys, into problem solving structures. This well crafted mechanic allows for experimentation, innovation, and above all, a healthy dose of fun. The levels employ the mechanics in a variety of gravity defying ways, allowing graceful solutions, but not so elegant that the player is content with the first pass through. "OCD" requirements and an addictive meta game call the player back to each level to improve performance (while cramping one's brain in the process).
The true essence of the gameplay mechanic is distilled in the "World of Goo Corporation", a bare playground in which the player can maniuplate the goo balls to form the highest tower possible. These goo balls, in a form of addicted trickery employed by the developer, are acquired through performance in the main game. Doing good will allow you to create, and by creating you are inspired to return to the game to collect even more goo balls. Truly magnificent edifices will result (as well as tragic time consumption).
All of this would make a fantastic game in of itself, but the art direction, in a rare instance, improves the quality of the gameplay. The music, art, and life poured into each of the levels invokes the best efforts of Tim Burton, Tom Waits, and other purveyors of the gentile macabre, where bizarre creations and ramshackles workshops reign supreme. This allows the player to believe that he is more than a master puzzle solver, but a creator in a dark and alluring world, where beauty is manifest in the strangeness of the creation.
Truly an inspired piece of work that transcends elements of video game apprassal, offering a sublime experience instead of a simple retail product.