Duck Game is a drink best enjoyed with friends. Developer Landon Podbielski concocted a alternative 1984 reality, where ducks run wild in a Battle Royale inspired dystopia, competing for survival in a kill or be killed scenario. Crazy as it all sounds, it all meshes together in a seamlessly fun multiplayer setting that is great for couch play.
Duck Game
Developer: Landon Podbielski
Price: 12.99 USD (9.99 USD on Steam until 6/11)
Platform: PC
MonsterVine was supplied with a PC code for review
At first glance, the 8-bit pixel art aesthetics recall of the old school gaming days with nostalgic callbacks to games of that era. The attention of detail paid towards Duck Game is rather cheeky and thoughtful. The chiptune music matches the visuals as it serves as the background of all the action. It’ll even ramp up the suspense in the closing moments. The icing on the cake is the quack on command key and an assortment of goofy hats to personalize your mallard. You can imagine how entertaining, or annoying these inclusions can be.
The real meat of Duck Game comes from its randomly generated levels, where combatants hop to one set piece to another littered with an arsenal of weapons, boosts, and items to choose from. The quick comparison here is Worms but a more creative version of it, particularly in its selection of weapons. Weapons range from a handgun to more bizarre ones like a magnet gun which renders armored combatants immobile and propels them towards your way. The inclusion of joke weapons provide comedic moments in these heated scenarios where it is just possible to jam on the drums or play tunes on a saxophone.
Each level is structured in a way where kills and deaths are equally engaging and leaves you with a charming feeling in multiplayer. In certain levels, players are pitted in close combat quarters and the match can end rather quickly and other times the levels present a number of nooks and crannies to explore. This can come in the form of flying a jetpack across a map to obtain a powerful weapon or using the teleport pads to quickly gain an advantage. On top of all this, Duck Game sports a level editor so anyone can create their own wacky scenarios.
Duck Game plays out its matches in quick twitch gaming fashion within a free for all or team 2v2 based setting. The first person, or team, to reach 10 wins is the victor and there is an mid-game intermission to give a little breather in between. A single player challenge mode is also available where you’ll be tasked with certain objectives like shooting targets as fast as possible. Completing these challenges earns tickets which can be redeemed for unlockable gameplay modifications in multiplayer. But let’s be honest, multiplayer is where you’ll get the most bang for your buck and Duck Game is unashamed to admit that killing other ducks is just plain rewarding.
The controls are simple and the difficulty of learning the mechanics aren’t too hard to grasp, even for the casual or non-gamer. However a caveat of my experience so far leads me to conclude that the controller is preferable to the keyboard and mouse despite mappable keybindings. I wholly believe this sort of frantic type of game is best enjoyed locally as there would be more memorable moments playing with your friends in person. It is not to say the online isn’t great, as there is built-in online matchmaking, but you just can’t replicate the social experience that Duck Game presents.
The Final Word
Duck Game successfully delivers a wacky brand of fun through for its quick sessions, pick up and play appeal, and should definitely be at the forefront of your gaming party. Just be prepared for the proverbial mayhem that ensues.
– MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
Quick heads up that we’re doing another a giveaway right here where you can win an Xbox One code for Mega Coin Squad.
