Overgrowth | Review | In the making for nearly a decade... and still needs more time in the oven.
35Disclosure: This video is based on complimentary code that I received from the publisher.
On initial inspection, 2017 indie action-adventure Overgrowth appeared to be going down that road. Developed by four person team Wolfire over the course of nine damn years, Overgrowth is meant to be a spiritual successor to Lugaru, a game the same team made in 2005. The universe of both Overgrowth and Lugaru is full of Redguard-style animals: all outfitted in armor and wielding swords and shields and what not. And that universe is a genuinely interested one to learn about. The game itself, however, leaves something to be desired. Overgrowth begins with you, Turner: a bunny warrior with a mysterious past. You’ve come to a tiny hamlet to escape the violent demons that haunt you, and to live a life at peace with the world.
Of course, it takes all of five seconds to find out that things are not so peaceful as they seem, and you head down the… ahem… rabbit hole of the history of violence that surrounds this world. Actually, that was the most jarring part of the story of Overgrowth in my eyes: you literally go down the road to teach some rude bandits a lesson and five minutes later you’re travelling across the ocean and attempting to disassemble a massive slaving operation.
It’s like if I went to bop the dog on the nose with a newspaper for pissing on the rug, and five minutes later I’ve flown to Bolivia to defeat a drug smuggling operation run by German Shepherds. It’s a little unnerving.
But whatever: at least the developers don’t bullshit you with two hours of helping your neighbor clear his basement of giant rats before you got to the good stuff. Of course, in the world of Overgrowth, giant rats are actual, anthropomorphic rats, but that’s neither here nor there.
Each level is both tedious and brief, generally falling into one of two categories: fighting and platforming. The combat system in Overgrowth is pretty rudimentary. Left click to attack, right click to throw enemies. You can perform jump kicks and throw knives and even pick up the occasional sword or spear for when you’re looking to kill your opponents really quick. The combat isn’t bad, per se: there just isn’t that much to it. And when you’ve done three levels in a row where the only purpose is to beat up some guards or smack around a boss or two, you wish there was more variety to how the game plays.
Well, there is an option for stealth, but outside of a few obvious moments, I didn’t find myself using it all that much. I might get rid of one enemy from the shadows before all his buddies notice me and I start desperately jump kicking my way to a better vantage point. The line of sight on these bad guys is crazy, by the way: they can spot you coming from further away than most any stealth-based enemy I’ve seen in a long time, so make sure you’ve got plenty of cover. Most levels will take you about five minutes or so. The level loads, you spot and kill half a dozen bad guys, and the next level loads. Rinse and repeat.
It isn’t until the combat ends and the platforming begins that you realize just how good you had it when you were stabbing dogs and rats. The platforming in Overgrowth is painful. As I mentioned before, you play a rabbit, so it goes without saying that one of your core abilities is a powerful jump. And jump powerfully you shall, my friends. Too powerfully, in fact. I think it was Hobbes the tiger who pointed out years ago how hard it is to change direction in midair, and Overgrowth is here to prove that to you. It isn’t always clear how far of a jump you’re going to need, so hopping from one platform to another becomes a series of experiments in trial and error. And you need to get it just right, because:
A. A ton of these platforming sections take place in high up places where a single slip up means your death.
B. Rabbits, apparently, cannot swim. And the game will remind you of this each and every time your sorry cotton tail slips into three feet of water.
Feel free to subscribe: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_c...
Or follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ElConquistadork
Or like me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Phil-K...
Here's what you're going to get at ElConquistadork:
Thought-provoking geek commentary that smells vaguely of gin and smoke. Game reviews and Let's Plays that cover everything from the super indie to the AAA to the "made around 700 years ago" category.
Phil The Conquistadork also maintains a healthy love to interacting with his audiences when they aren't assholes (and sometimes when they are).
What you will not get at ElConquistadork: ugliness (the host's face notwithstanding), drama (the host's bank account notwithstanding), or cat videos.
...Huh? He's put a cat in a few of his videos already? Shit.
......Okay, maybe you'll get a few cat videos.
"Sneak A Little Drinky" written and performed by The Butterscotch Bros: Carlos Avendano and Dan Ross.
Other Videos By Phil the Conquistadork
Other Statistics
Overgrowth Statistics For Phil the Conquistadork
There are 1,385 views in 1 video for Overgrowth. His channel published less than an hour of Overgrowth content, making up less than 0.06% of the total overall content on Phil the Conquistadork's YouTube channel.