GROOD (REVIEW)

The machines have invaded so you built GROOD. That's about as deep as the story goes with this trippy shoot 'em up. Thankfully the game's mechanics, and brutal difficulty offer the player much more than just that one line introduction. In what could best be described as the rise of Skynet versus 'Batteries Not Included' we get a cute 'em up that has it's own unique damage taken, and damage dealt mechanics. All with a flying tube television that has a rocket booster, and a gatling gun strapped to it. Thus is GROOD ...

As GROOD you will basically be flying left to right blasting the fool out of mechanical enemies while dodging hazards, and avoiding death by repeated hits. Damage not only changes your lights from green to yellow, and finally to red as you take in the hits, but also breaks the fourth wall by putting cracks in your television screen. Obscuring your already impeded vision. In the process of screen shattering the game creates a visual color distortion that mirrors that of a real television malfunction. Going from dark, to rainbow colored, to grey scale, and even blurred. In the way of combat things are fairly straightforward, given the addition of a slowdown mechanic, and the weapon power-up/weapon upgrade system. 

Power-ups in GROOD, as important as they are to progress, come once per level offering you new ways to deal the deathblow to the mechanized invaders. Ultimately making progression crucial, and the power-ups a real reward for those who have the skill to see each stage through to the end. As you make your way through the game's stages you can swap between weapons on the fly via shoulder buttons or face button alternatives. New weapon types include things like a shotgun. Said weapons can even get upgrades making them more powerful. You do start off with a weak version of a gatling gun, for example, which does meager damage on most enemy types, but can increase it's damage output by picking up the upgrade in the later stages. As far as enemy health indicators go you can tell when an enemy is about to go down by their thin white health bar that lies just within their body. It wears down the more you shoot your intended target.

When it comes to stages I am assuming there are several of them, if not more. I can't be for certain, because the game is truly difficult, and I've yet to make it past stage 3. I do know that stages are named though. Mostly according to the terrain. The stages themselves are not long, per say, but surviving the aggressive enemy ships, and hazards that are added with each new stage takes some serious skill. The only relief comes with the occasional health refill container. That, and the slowdown mechanic which has to be built up by a certain number of kills before it can be used can be a saving grace in a more crowded situation.

The Presentation ...

Visually GROOD is what you'd call a 2.5D shmup. It is played on a partially two dimensional playing field with 3D elements added in, in the form of ships and moving stage props. As I mentioned earlier taking damage causes the screen to distort. Both in a shattering effect, and a color distortion effect. It is these visual anomalies that create a trippy psychedelic sensation that might be too intense for some players, especially those with a history of seizures. For those looking for a more classic look the game does have a older generation graphics filter in it's options menu that allows for a 90's era theme. It basically turns everything into a blurry pixel constructed mess, and to be honest it's not that much easier on the old eyes.

Aside from the visuals one of GROOD's key features is it's heavy metal soundtrack. As you play you'll constantly hear the screaming riffs, and chords of the electric guitar. Played purely without vocals. Of course it adds an intensity to the already intense situation that you find yourself in. Speaking of intense situations ... GROOD has, but one difficulty setting. That setting is HARD!!! I think the developer was hellbent on making this the most hardcore shmup on the market, and I certainly think he achieved that here.

For those of you wondering about modes of play the game features a single-player, and local co-op "Journey" mode. Single-player is self-explanatory, and co-op too. All you really need to know about co-op is that both players play on the same screen. Each piloting a different GROOD with separate controllers. It allows two players to work together to beat the stages, and in a way lessens the difficulty. If you have a friend close by who can play it's a good alternative to the main mode of play.

The Verdict ...

Simple, but complicated. That's what I'd say GROOD is. It definitely takes hardcore to the extreme with challenge, and presentation. I liked the main visual style, and the damage mechanics. I like how it added extra challenges to what would otherwise be a routine shmup run. The visuals, and heavy metal soundtrack really do seem to carry this game's experience to a higher place than it would be without them though. I know it is gimmicky, but it does enough to sell this budget shmup for me, regrdless. With the included leaderboards, and highscore focused gameplay it does good to give the player some replay value, and replay value is good. Considering all key components GROOD scrapes by with a passing grade from yours truly. I feel it could have been so much more at base level with the enemies, and such, but it does offer a unique experience through it's visual and audio enhancements.