Trippy head-tosser Gonner2 bounces out next week
Gobble'd up.
Truly the Basement Jaxx of videogames, shooty wobbly platforming sequel Gonner2 is almost ready to start asking where your head's at. The sequel to Ditto's absolute stunner of a side-scrolling roguelite, Gonner 2 dives into the underworld next Thursday, promising an even greater explosion of colour that threaten to knock the skull right off you.
Quietly one of the best, if not the prettiest games of 2016, I was well excited to hear that Gonner was getting a sequel earlier this summer. Too many people slept on the first game, I reckon, and Gonner2 looks bigger, wilder and a hell of a lot weirder.
Like 2016's Gonner, this month's sequel is a delightfully trippy action-platformer painted in a splash of throbbing colours. Your wee man, Ikk, is bouncing off into the underworld to solve a problem for Death - and to do so, you'll need to be on the hunt for new weapons, backpacks, and entirely new heads, popping on a new noggin to dramatically mix up your moveset.
I often feel like the only person screaming the first game's praises, but my gushing was validated by former RPS-er Adam Smith in his Gonner review. Granted, it's not a roguelite you'll stick hundreds of hours into, but its strangely cosy spelunking makes each trip down into the darkness memorably wonderful.
"GoNNER is this year’s Downwell – a neat, short-form action game that has found the perfect visual style to communicate its near-misses and big hits. Whether you want to show off by pushing its systems to the limits or play at a more relaxed and careful pace, basking in the gorgeous music, it’s an absolute delight."
Next week's sequel expands on that, branching into a sprawling non-linear world with more heads, baddies and bosses. It's all looking slightly more "videogame" this time 'round, with more stats and UI guff on the screen - but thankfully, each level still ends with a catworm gobbling your little boy up. Wouldn't have it any other way.
Gonner2 wobbles onto Steam on October 22nd. In the meantime, I wholly recommend heading on over to Ditto's Itch page, which is full of wonderfully awful free games about eating your pal's face.