This game is every bit as enjoyable as it is straight-up crazy. There’s an unprecedented amount of variety in gameplay, the graphical quality is very impressive, and it also hearkens back to the golden age of 3D platforming in its structure and overall aesthetic, despite some minor flaws.

Squirrel with a Gun takes place in a sandbox neighborhood complete with houses to explore, roads and street obstacles to either run across or drive around or to even perform stunts for additional bonuses, underwater areas to explore, secret bases to escape, rivers to water ski on, and even bouncy castles in the sky to bounce through.

"The world it’s set in does an excellent job of delivering a great depth of diversity waiting to be experienced."

The watchword of this title is variety, and in terms of the game’s conceptual design, there’s certainly plenty of it, especially for a game that at first glance, arguably looks quite generic on the surface. However, this game is anything but generic in every aspect. The world it’s set in does an excellent job of delivering a great depth of diversity waiting to be experienced. Aside from that, however, Squirrel with a Gun is also graphically stunning, down to even the smallest details such as the squirrel’s fair follicles, the reflections in either the squirrel’s eyes or the agent’s sunglasses, the breathtaking water effects, and the superb use of lighting in the underground base sequences.

At its core, Squirrel With a Gun is a traditional 3D platformer, functioning fundamentally similarly to the likes of Banjo-Kazooie, and the original Jak & Daxter. The main objective is to collect two different types of acorns scattered throughout the neighborhood. These include the regular acorns found all over the streets, in houses, across obstacles, and even up power lines, but they can also be collected by either entertaining or menacing the locals, and by defeating enemies. There are also golden acorns that are obtained by completing specific tasks across each different section of the neighborhood.

These acorns are used to progress further throughout the game, as well as unlock different guns to wield, different vehicles to ride, and even different outfits to wear that can be used to traverse minefields and explore underwater; as well as them being used to unlock new skins for the player character. Locations of collectibles can be ascertained by climbing flagpoles relative to each area, and the player must then obtain them by undertaking precision platforming, defeating enemies, riding vehicles and solving wonderfully elaborate puzzles strewn across the neighborhood.

"Players save their progress by latching onto birdhouses scattered throughout the game as opposed to their being a simple save option in the pause menu for example."

Squirrel with a Gun has variety not only in its conceptual design but also in terms of gameplay. Puzzles are very cleverly designed, and there is also a great sense of challenge to be had when it comes to the platforming aspect. A good thing is that players are given the option to take their time when it comes to this. It provides a great gaming experience for both newcomers to the genre as well as seasoned veterans looking for an experience new to what they’re used to. Inevitably, comparisons can be drawn between this game and Conker’s Bad Fur Day, just without as much of the mature content as the former. There’s even an outfit that can be unlocked similar to Rareware’s squirrel.

But with all the other elements of this game sprinkled over the 3D platforming side of it, it makes for an extremely entertaining game. Guns are not just used to defeat enemies, but also to traverse obstacles and solve puzzles. There are ways besides using guns to subdue enemies such as climbing on them and performing cinematic takedown moves. There are also a fair few boss fights thrown in for good measure that again require a decent level of strategy to undertake.

However, players save their progress by latching onto birdhouses scattered throughout the game as opposed to their being a simple save option in the pause menu for example. While it is a nice little gimmick reminiscent of how saves would be handled in classic games, it can make it considerably easy to lose progress if players forget to do it. 

I reviewed the PC version, and full keyboard and controller support is offered. They have been implemented extremely well; especially given how much diversity there is in its gameplay and how many different commands there are to execute.

"To complete Squirrel with a Gun  to 100% can take a maximum of 8 hours, which is the game’s most prominent flaw."

When it comes to platforming, adjusting the camera sensitivity option would be advisable for anyone who may initially struggle in this regard, but once done, the controls do not come in the way to hinder the game’s sense of fun and enjoyment. There is also an auto-aim function that makes gun wielding welcomingly uncomplicated, even when riding vehicles at the same time.

To complete Squirrel with a Gun  to 100% can take a maximum of 8 hours, which is the game’s most prominent flaw. Compared to the aforementioned traditional platformers, it falls short of them in that respect, and will inevitably leave players wanting more.

The silver lining is that the variety in gameplay and the fundamental structure of the game both offer scope for expansion if a sequel and/or a spiritual successor is ever developed. This game does have the potential makings for a prominent gaming series if the developers decide to expand upon it, and of course, there is more than enough variety in gameplay to make this title extremely enjoyable for the small amount of time it can be made to last. But regardless, Squirrel with a Gun is much too short.

"The cinematic finishes players can execute while defeating enemies are also hilarious at times and only add to Squirrel with a Gun’s overall comedic aesthetic. "

The premise of Squirrel with a Gun is as simple as it is hysterical. A lone squirrel breaks into a top-secret base and steals a golden acorn. He is then pursued by an organization of agents in typical James Bond fashion to retrieve the acorn and terminate their furry fugitive target. After having escaped the facility, the squirrel resolves to collect more golden acorns, help and/or harass the inhabitants of a quiet peaceful neighborhood, and defeat the agency pursuing him.

While the plot is much more simple than thematically compelling, that’s not what players will play this game for. Players will be moved to laughter with almost every comical cutscene that takes place throughout the game and will be generally charmed by its very basic initial premise. The cinematic finishes players can execute while defeating enemies are also hilarious at times and only add to Squirrel with a Gun’s overall comedic aesthetic. 

In a market that is becoming increasingly difficult to stand out among the crowd with more indie titles released year after year, Squirrel with a Gun’s wonderfully hilarious and engaging experience does an excellent job of standing out among many other titles.

This game was reviewed on the PC.

The early stages of development suggest that this game has a lot of work that needs to be done in pretty much every aspect. Level Zero: Extraction at this point feels much more like a detrimental experience rather than an enjoyable one. One positive to focus on, however, is the game’s graphics. The visuals on the technical level are wonderfully rendered and conform well to modern-day standards, running at a full 60 FPS with a powerful enough graphics card.

"This game has a lot of work that needs to be done in pretty much every aspect."

Its network performance also poses no issues presenting nothing in the way of lag or delaying play. The use of lighting is also handled fairly well, and among many other elements of the game, is definitely something that has the potential to be improved upon. On the conceptual level, however, it is particularly generic, featuring many elements seen a thousand times over within the science-fiction medium, as well as sci-fi games in general, such as Halo, Deus Ex, and System Shock. The soundtrack also does very little to add to the game’s supposedly scary atmosphere.

The music that plays throughout both the main menu and the opening cutscene sounds much more action-oriented than horror. However, no tracks play during actual gameplay, but this is most likely something that will be added throughout the course of development (along with many other planned features, such as dedicated control support and additional gameplay modes. The most utterly detrimental thing about this game, however, is undoubtedly the gameplay.

The objective while playing as a human mercenary is to choose a loadout of weapons and items before the start of the game, collect as much loot as possible in-game, defend yourself against attacks from aliens and other competing mercenaries, and eventually to find an extraction point to exit the game and to level up their character over time. Unfortunately, the thing that players will spend most of their time doing in the human campaigns is switching lights on all over the place, as the electricity regularly fails, making it more difficult to navigate through to detect enemies and find loot. Occasionally, the player gets to dispatch the odd alien that infrequently appears but will most likely end up taking decisive cheap shots from either aliens or competing mercenaries before they can react in time; especially if they happen to be newcomers to this genre.

"Unfortunately, the thing that players will spend most of their time doing in the human campaigns is switching lights on all over the place, as the electricity regularly fails, making it more difficult to navigate through to detect enemies and find loot."

Players are also given a portable map to refer to so that they can reach extraction points, as well as wall maps strewn across the battlefield. But these are also by in large useless as they hold no indication of where the player is on the maps. Loot and money can be traded in for weapons the further players progress, but what also works to their detriment is that in order to get specific weapons, players need to trade in specific items, which given how easy is it to die, probably won’t have retained. There is also the option to work as part of a group in the human campaign, but the same issues exist in this game mode regardless and do little to add to the game in a meaningful way.

The alien mode is also just as frustrating. The objective is to eliminate as many humans as possible until all of them are either dispatched or extracted. A general problem with the game that hampers the experience of playing as an alien in particular is that the battlefield is too big, and squadrons of humans and aliens alike are far too spread out to begin with. As a result, players inevitably spend the vast majority of their time wandering around aimlessly trying to find faraway humans. The only difference at that point is players don’t have to keep switching the lights on because the aliens can see in the dark.

The alien’s chief ability is to turn themselves invisible in order to take humans by surprise and eliminate them using stealth. However, doing so is pretty much impossible since humans carry lights and hand torches, which burn aliens, killing the player almost instantly. It’s made apparent practically from the get-go that playing this game is far too taxing on players to be enjoyable; be that if they are either entry-level or seasoned pros when it comes to the FPS genre. One of the major plans for the future of Level Zero: Extraction’s development cycle is the inclusion of dedicated controller support. It will be interesting to see how this is handled given the sheer number of commands there are (in between having to defend against enemies, collect items, switch the lights on, switch the flashlight on whenever the power goes out, open up the portable map and adjusting the inventory as well any other gameplay elements planned for the future) and it’s not particularly user-friendly heads-up display.

"For now, there is simply not enough story to hold player interest. Certainly not enough to compensate for the many shortcomings this game currently suffers from."

It’s evident even in this early stage of development that there will be a lot of refinement required in this aspect, as passive controller support is available in the form of keyboard mapping. Playing the game this way is arguably the best indication of that. But if the developers insist on keeping as many different commands and mechanics intact, controller support will be mandatory, as it will likely be difficult for some players to play the game effectively using a keyboard. The basic premise of Level Zero: Extraction is that a human organization known as the New Horizons Corporation lands on an alien planet named Turion looking for new life forms. Upon their return to Earth, they begin to conduct military experiments by mixing the human genome with that of the aliens found on Turion. Inevitably, things go awry, and the aliens run riot all over New Horizons’ research facility.

Following this, corporations on Earth begin to dispatch human mercenaries to retrieve what data was discovered before things went south. The small snippet of story players are given at this stage is vague, unspecific, and worth next to no emotional investment. Once the gameplay has been refined to an acceptable standard during development, a short story campaign could potentially elaborate more on the basic premise and introduce characters in situations worth progressing through, whilst also expanding on the game’s (or potential series’) wider mythology, explaining further of what happened at New Horizons and what other experiments they may have been conducting.

But for now, there is simply not enough story to hold player interest. Certainly not enough to compensate for the many shortcomings this game currently suffers from. Level Zero: Extraction has the potential to offer players a more unique and comprehensive experience depending on how development is handled over its latter stages. However, there are major revisions needed from the ground up to make it work. Unfortunately, there are too many things this game has going against it for it to come across as a meaningful experience. It would be a serious shame to play the final build to realize that what players will still spend the vast majority of the time doing is switching lights on.

"Level Zero: Extraction is a pretty disappointing title."

Elements I believe could do with tweaking would be the mechanic of trading specific items for weapons and introducing a less variable system of gaining new gear. This would significantly improve the player’s chance of progressing through the game in a meaningful way. An example of a major element in need of refinement is the level-up system. Letting players simply walk away with a minimal amount of loot after dying hardly incentivizes players to keep playing, especially newcomers.

This is despite the inclusion of the safe slot boxes players can use to retain a few items after death. Experience points could be rewarded to players for getting as far as they do after dying, along with other minor awards to encourage them to keep playing for example. Level Zero: Extraction is a pretty disappointing title upon its introduction via Steam Early Access and it becomes apparent almost immediately that a lot of work is needed to offer players the rich experience that it is intended to be. In between too many ways to be almost instantly killed, its disjointed gameplay, unengrossing story, and control scheme, it’s almost not worth playing at this early stage.

This game was reviewed on PC.