Squirrel With A Gun
Review
Wide eyed and bushy tailed
by William Thompson
reviewed on PC
Nuts are Forever
Heroes come in many shapes and sizes, and as could be deciphered from the title of this game, our hero is small in stature and comes armed with cuteness and a bushy tail. Although he is adorable, he becomes a rodent with a view to a kill after eating a golden acorn. After completing a short tutorial mission inside what seems to be some sort of scientific facility, our hero is let loose in a suburban neighbourhood.
The goal of Squirrel With a Gun isn't really mentioned, but by roaming the neighbourhood players will notice several of the Golden Acorns laying around in hard to reach locations. And so, off you'll set to collect each of the nutty goods whilst avoiding the secret agents who will impede your progress.
Furryfinger
Being a squirrel can certainly have its advantages - he can move around town without anyone taking much notice, and even those who do take notice are more likely to try and get a photo to whack up on Instagram than cause any harm. This does allow him to sneak up on unsuspecting enemies on most occasions without too much hassle. But as our hero is reasonably tiny in stature, it also has its disadvantages. The main disadvantage is that even the smallest weapon has a decent amount of kickback, propelling our furry friend backwards. And depending on what is behind you, this can be an issue as you could plummet to your death if you are precariously perched above a vat of lava.
During your journey across the various locations, our hero will be able to acquire several different weapons. And each time, the absurdity of him carrying ever increasing weapons increases. It is hilarious to watch as he moves about carrying a rocket launcher that is larger than himself. Despite the distinct lack of a story, Squirrel With a Gun does have some comedic elements. Indeed, the game allows for special finishing moves which has our furry friend disposing of enemies in slow motion animations.
Fur Your Eyes Only
Our hero will also pick up a range of clothing and accessories from special cases scattered throughout. Not only do these outfits make our supercharged hero look dapper, but several of the outfits also have effects that will help him through the game. If you want to walk unscathed through a minefield, then you’ll need to pick up and don a bomb suit. If you want to be able to reach the dark depths of an underwater cave, then you’ll need to acquire a diving suit. Each of these areas will have three object types to collect, some of which are sitting in plain sight. However, other collectibles are hidden and can take a little more work. Reaching these collectibles adds some puzzle solving into the game and will often require gamers to explore their surroundings more.
Although our furry James Bond wannabe will primarily foot it across each of the areas, he will also come across a range of vehicles with which to drive or pilot. These enable him to move around at a quicker pace. A remote control car is his first option and I must admit that it took a little while to get used to the handling. But once you've worked out the intricacies of remote control driving, it does become much easier. The same can be said for the controls in general.
The controls are not aided by the poor camera angles. At times the camera can be a huge pain in the bushy tail, particularly when our hero needs to jump from one pole to another. When this happens, the view of the destination can be restricted by the pole our squirrel is currently perched upon. But not only that, but some of the controls are hidden within the pause menu. Once you’ve acquired the car, players can call for their vehicle when they’re on the road. However, the game requires you to access the pause menu and select the option from there. It just feels like an extra step that could have been removed by simply assigning a particular key to the action.
Die another Day
Although there is little story and no dialogue whatsoever, Squirrel With a Gun certainly has a sense of humour. Controlling a small furry rodent that can carry a rocket launcher and then produce bullet-time finishing moves with a variety of weapons is a heap of fun. Collecting each of the golden acorns and other collectibles effectively makes the game a 3D open-world platform puzzle game with a bad-ass, but adorable hero. The enemies are varied enough, the boss battles are reasonably challenging and the puzzles are designed to encourage exploration. And although the main game is on the short side, players can always head back and collect each of the collectibles that they missed along the way.
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6.2
fun score
Pros
Nice puzzle mechanics. Fun exploration
Cons
Camera can be a pain, limited story
