Mighty Goose
Goose lips sink ships
Right: it’s a lovely morning in the universe and you are a heroic goose. One with access to heavy weapons, powerful vehicles, and a selection of smart AI companions. While the absurdity of having a waterfowl for a hero is quite happily played on, it’s not the main focus of the game; the developer was too busy making a run-and-gun shooter that’s fun to play.
In the process of saving the galaxy from the Void King you run, you shoot things, you occasionally honk,1 and that – apart from breaks when you drive or fly and shoot things – is basically it. It’s a wonderfully simple and pure foundation that is built on with tight and responsive controls, clear and chunky retro graphics, and pleasingly large bosses. There are only a few weapons to pick up, but each one has a satisfying oomph to it,2 and there are no bad ones. While you’ll see the credits within an hour or two of starting the game, it’ll last you longer than that.
There’s then a ‘mirror universe’, which means tougher versions of all the levels – something we happily play through thanks to the sheer joy of carving through legions of enemies with gunfire. After that, you get the option of a God mode, which you can use to cheese any remaining S ranks you haven’t managed to earn yet. Naturally, we did that.
Pre-level prep (companion and buff choice) affords a sense of ownership over the entire experience and, while shooter veterans will have absolutely no trouble sailing through the levels, the tradeoff is a userfriendly atmosphere that makes repeated playthroughs a joy rather than a slog. It’s not the size of your game that matters; it’s what you do with it that counts.