Honk If Your Hoardy
Ever since the game’s initial release back in September, I was largely just exposed to the meme culture built around the title. I had seen some footage here and there to grasp the concept of the game, but it wasn’t until the title saw its release on Game Pass that I was able to get hands-on. While much of the popularity of the game seems largely based on its impact on pop culture, this little indie gem is still a charming if a bit shallow experience.
Untitled Goose Game is largely a time-sensitive puzzle game where you, as the (un-titular?) Goose, will interact with a variety of characters and objects in order to achieve certain results such as pulling a chair out from under an old man or making a woman accidentally destroy her neighbor’s prize rose. These solutions and more are built around a small handful of static puzzle environments, which more or less have certain sequences that must be followed to the letter to solve. This requires you to time certain evens with the actions of the people around you, or perform acts of stealth as they turn their back, or get nose deep into their newspaper.
Pushing through Untitled Goose Game will take you only a few short hours, but there is a decent chunk of secret challenges and timed modes that can be completed as well. While you’ll likely accidentally solve one of these bonus tasks during your initial playthrough, like locking the young boy in the garage or opening an umbrella in the tv studio, you’ll unlock what these previously secret objectives are once you’ve completed the game, an adventure that has one of the most satisfying final levels I’ve played in some time.
Told throughout technically five locations, four of these are standard puzzle environments where you’ll honk at numerous bystanders, run away from those that want you out of their property, or gather a ton of unique items to add to your ever-growing hoarded collection of junk. Each level is based on completing certain tasks. I’ve mentioned a few already, but you’ll also look to drop a bucket on a grouchy man’s head, make a picnic from a variety of items owned by the man in the garden, or trick a small boy into putting on the wrong pair of glasses.
While each of the solutions present in the game is a specifically designed puzzle for that environment, there is a certain charm to randomly wreaking havoc as the Goose, ticking off certain characters, or chasing the small boy with the glasses into a phone booth. A great deal of why Untitled Goose Game works is the concept of sowing chaos across this small countryside neighborhood. Even just flapping your wings and waddling around honking is frankly more enjoyable than it should be.
Now, while all that is very fun stuff, the game is largely hollow in what it is as an actual game. The puzzle themselves largely have one basic solution, and much of its charm can be lost upon repeated plays. Should we get a sequel, then it would be very wise to have many puzzles have vastly different ways of solving them. Games that usually have that type of variety become talking points on how you went about this as opposed to what other people had done and frankly, this game is something where that would be a natural fit given how deep it’s ingrained itself into pop culture so far.
As the Goose, you can duck, run, flap your wings, grab onto items, and honk your little heart out. Moving him around takes a while to get used to as let’s be honest, how many games have you played with goose controls? This movement also translates into how you move certain items as well, such as needing a wide turn to pull a rake around the corner of a potted area without getting it lodged there until you pull it to the side and make another wide turn. Items such as bags of dirt have a weight to them that causes you to move much slower as the light-weight Goose is simply trying his best.
Visually, there is a very nice simplicity to what developer House House has built here. There is a very flat iconic look to the game and it certainly allows it to stand out in a sea of copy-cats. The Goose himself, or herself, as it’s not actually stated, is animated very nicely with his honks having motion lines indicating the volume of his honks. You can also honk with a harmonica, making hilarious sounds as you torment those around you.
While I still believe that much of the popularity of this game is that of its time in the meme spotlight, there is still a lot to like here, even if the game itself can feel a tad shallow. The puzzles are fun and unlocking the secret ones can make for replayability to a certain degree. There is certainly a wealth of charm baked into the game for sure, and its short length can make for an engaging experience to those who feel intimidated by a far lengthier game and just want to put something on with friends that isn’t your typical party game.
Untitled Goose Game was downloaded via Game Pass by the reviewer and played on an Xbox One X.
All screenshots were taken on an Xbox One X.