R.E.P.O.
Developer: semiwork
Publisher: semiwork
Platform: Steam
We Got a Job to Do
In our quest to find games to play as a family, my partner and I decided to give R.E.P.O. a shot, and we are so glad we did. This quaint horror game is a real gem, and it is well worth the $13 for the amount of fun we’re having fun. Having to work together to grab as much stuff as we can for the Taxman, all while avoiding the wacky monsters that are lurking about the levels is a great time. It’s such a simple concept, extract the valuables from a variety of abandoned and monster infested locations, but the physics-based mechanics and proximity voice chat makes this multiplayer experience something special.
Grainy Footage Fun
I am a big fan of the art style and direction of R.E.P.O. The little robots you play as are bursting with personality, with their big googly eyes and flappy heads being infinitely charming. I am a big fan of the grainy bodycam style camera, and I find that it makes you feel as if you’re watching an old VHS found footage movie that was buried in the back corner of the video store. The camera helps add to the horror and the sense of desperation you feel while you’re trying to get what you need out of these haunted locales. Some of the monster designs on the other hand are hit or miss. While I do appreciate the variety of monsters that are wandering through the levels, I can’t help but feel like some of them were just dropped in the game. Now this doesn’t detract from the game at all, and I think this is very much a personal opinion, but I would like for the monsters to have a more cohesive look to them.
The levels are randomized each time you head out, which adds to the replayability of the title. I hope as development progresses more level types are added to the game, because we have only seen three so far, and more variety is always good. I don’t doubt we’ll see more added in time; it was only released in February after all.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
In R.E.P.O. you take on the roll of an adorable robot on a mission to gather and extract a variety of valuable items from haunted and monster infested locations. You have a cart that you move around with you to help in collecting the items, which you then bring to one of the multiple extraction points scattered about the maps. Teamwork is paramount when it comes to gathering and extracting all of the valuables you need to collect for your boss, the Taxman. If you’re not working together, you’re going to have a bad time.
The beam you use to grab the goods is entirely physics-based, which means you have to be gentle with them and not throw things around all willy nilly; if you break too much, you won’t have enough stuff to reach the monetary goal for the level. The small objects you can grab, like cups and what not, can be lifted by a single player, but larger objects like pianos need to be carried as a group. Where you grab the large objects also matters when it comes to moving them to the extraction zone; lifting things from the bottom make them easier to move, because breaking them is heartbreaking.
The weapons you can buy to deal with the monsters are also physics-based. You don’t just equip the weapons and then use them with a simple press of a button, no, you need to swing the bat and aim the gun with your mouse. While it doesn’t sound that hard, but in the heat of the moment against one of the nasties it’s a lot easier said than done. It also seems that you have to hunt down and defeat the monsters as the levels go on, because they drop valuable loot that you are going to need to satisfy the Taxman. It seems that the later levels don’t have enough stuff laying around to extract, which means you have no choice but to go on the hunt. Which is once again, easier said than done.
The proximity chat is so cool, and it’s fantastic that the monsters can hear you as you’re talking with your team. Most of the time it’s a determent, as your jibber jabbering will draw the beasts to you, but I have also used it to draw the monsters away from my partner so she could get away and find a better place to hide. It is just such a neat idea to me, and how it is implemented here in R.E.P.O. is great. Having to be quiet while you’re hiding from the beasts adds to the horror of the situations in such an organic way, and it has raised my heart rate on more than one occasion.
I have yet to try a job on my own, and I honestly have no desire to. R.E.P.O. was made for multiplayer, and I think playing on your own would be doing yourself a disservice. It’s good though that you have the option to play on your own, because more options are always good. I should give it a try, because if nothing else, it will be a challenge.
Got to Get Back to Work
If you’re looking for a fun little multiplayer game to play with friends and family, R.E.P.O. is a great option, especially at the price point. I hope the game is going to keep up with the updates, because it seems like there has been some good momentum from the developers since it was released into early access. It will be interesting to see what is added in the months to come, and I am happy that I am along for the ride. Now it’s time to get back to work, because the Taxman wants his money.
