Grunn

About

Grunn is a first-person gardening and exploration game set in a scenic Dutch countryside. As a maintenance worker, you'll need to fix up a garden with limited tools, while experiencing unnerving vibes and a sense of isolation. With multiple endings, satisfying gardening tasks, and a peaceful village to discover, your actions will determine your fate before Monday arrives.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

99%

Audience ScoreBased on 944 reviews

graphics33 positive mentions

grinding12 negative mentions

Grunn offers a unique blend of gardening and mystery, providing a charming yet eerie atmosphere that keeps players engaged.
The game features a satisfying gameplay loop where players uncover secrets and solve puzzles, reminiscent of titles like Outer Wilds.
With multiple endings and a wealth of discoveries, Grunn encourages exploration and replayability, making it a delightful experience.

Some players find the game repetitive, as it requires multiple playthroughs to achieve different endings, which can become tedious.
The puzzles can sometimes feel obscure or illogical, leading to frustration when players are unsure how to progress.
While the horror elements add intrigue, they may not appeal to everyone, and some players feel the game doesn't fully deliver on its horror promises.

graphics
76 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
53%
4%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a unique and charming art style that blends low-poly aesthetics with vibrant colors, creating an engaging and eerie atmosphere. While some players noted performance issues on less powerful systems, the visuals are generally praised for their creativity and ability to enhance the game's storytelling and puzzle-solving elements. Overall, the graphics contribute significantly to the game's indie charm and immersive experience, despite not being technically advanced.
- “Beautiful art style and sound atmosphere, filled with so many little details and stories.”
- “The minimalist aesthetic works beautifully, adding a unique indie charm, easy to understand visuals, and accentuates a dreamlike storybook world.”
- “The art style is incredibly unique and vibrant, the music is like this weird mix of ambient low-fi and tech trance, and the game somehow presents itself as a horror game.”
- “And the biggest mystery (completely spoiler-free) is this: why, with those potato graphics (don’t take me wrong, it’s part of the experience and I love it), I can’t run the game smoothly on my not-so-potato computer, which had absolutely no problem with Outer Wilds?”
- “The visuals are a little harsh at their default settings, but you can mess around with various options to reduce eye strain, which I really appreciate!”
- “Graphics-wise, it's not going to win any awards, but personally, I love this kind of low-poly pixel filter aesthetic and it works really well here.”
gameplay
76 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
66%
4%
The gameplay in Grunn is characterized by a satisfying time-loop mechanic that encourages exploration and puzzle-solving, reminiscent of titles like Outer Wilds. Players engage in a mix of gardening, item collection, and environmental discovery, with a unique polaroid system that aids in tracking progress and hints. While the gameplay loop can feel repetitive due to the need to restart after each run, the charming aesthetics and engaging mechanics keep the experience enjoyable and rewarding.
- “The gameplay loop feels very satisfying while not getting boring.”
- “The gameplay is very satisfying and the puzzles are incredibly well done; I was getting huge Outer Wilds vibes while trying to solve them.”
- “The gameplay loop of finding new items and trying to figure out what you're supposed to do with them is very satisfying and addictive.”
- “And there are some additional issues with the gameplay loop, which requires you to redo the entire playthrough each time.”
- “There's some open-worldness and a time limit, but the gameplay is all pretty much take an item and use it where it goes to get more items, complete with a fair amount of moon logic.”
- “Puzzles are either unbearably simple or unreasonably confusing; all the gameplay is trial and error.”
atmosphere
47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
45%
6%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its beautiful art style and sound design, creating an intriguing blend of eerie and whimsical elements. Players appreciate the surreal and fantastical vibes, which evoke a sense of unease without relying heavily on traditional horror tropes. Overall, the atmosphere enhances the gameplay experience, making it engaging and rewarding as players unravel its mysteries.
- “The sound design creates an intriguing and ominous atmosphere when required, and the art style is very pleasant though it is used to achieve unnerving results very effectively.”
- “A wonderfully atmospheric game where you slowly unravel and solve the mysteries and puzzles of the game's world.”
- “The music, visuals, and eerie atmosphere all worked perfectly for me.”
- “Sure it has a spooky atmosphere and has a few startling moments (the dev even added an option to make the 'loud sfx' quieter, which is nice), but mostly it's just weird and off-kilter with a feeling of 'something's not right here'.”
- “It's very well-crafted, with an overarching atmosphere of unease rather than traditional horror, though it does still contain jump-scares and other thrilling moments.”
- “This might be a very minor spoiler but you'll learn pretty quickly a lot of items and things you can do are purely for achievements or atmosphere, which contrasted with a traditional point and click I think streamlines things nicely (it becomes pretty obvious the things you need once you have them).”
story
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
80%
7%
The game's story is described as a charming and mysterious experience, featuring a dreamlike world with multiple endings that gradually reveal more of the narrative. While some players found the main quest underwhelming and lacking clarity, the unique art style and engaging side quests contributed to an enjoyable exploration of the storyline. Overall, the game combines elements of puzzle-solving and adventure, with a mix of eerie and whimsical storytelling that keeps players intrigued.
- “I love the multiple endings and how with each one you find out more of the story!”
- “An excellent concept and good storyline played out in a unique and visually interesting way.”
- “Non-euclidean areas fitting inside a hay bale, eerie characters speaking in tongues and looking both inviting and menacing; an unnervingly charming story unfolds itself as layers of an onion, making you want to experience just a little bit more of this place and its otherworldly occurrences, even after managing to complete the main story.”
- “I wish a lot of the top reviews said less about the story.”
- “This is my biggest issue with the game, since the main quest itself ended up being really underwhelming and was in dire need of more pieces to make it up, pieces that were in the game but unfortunately were not used where they were required the most and the most frustrating part of the experience was precisely realizing that out of the 100 puzzle pieces that I was 'painstakingly' keeping track of I only needed about 25 of them (at most) to make the whole picture.”
- “And 'stumble' is the perfect verb here, as Grunn’s lack of direction almost necessitates, at least at first, that we aimlessly fall into 'side quests'; small seemingly (and sometimes truly) unconnected plot holes, from the mundane task of trading an 'eggball' for a band member's instrument, to the outlandish endeavor of reviving a dead goldfish pried from its earthy resting place in the park to live a new life inside a fishbowl, inside a warp hole, inside the park grounds.”
humor
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in "Grunn" is described as quirky and inventive, blending funny moments with eerie and suspenseful elements. Players appreciate the game's ability to oscillate between humor and horror, featuring amusing characters like gnomes and lighthearted scenarios amidst spooky puzzles and jump scares. Overall, the game is celebrated for its unique mix of comedy, mystery, and exploration, making it an enjoyable experience.
- “Grunn is weird and funny, don't worry about it being scary.”
- “Enjoy the journey, it's got a great sense of humor and mystery.”
- “Grunn never lands on one particular tone - though I suppose eerie and suspenseful comes closest to a through line - as at times it’s funny and cute, like watching a snail race itself over the course of the weekend, to bordering horror with intermittent jump scares or distant figures watching you with gremlin-like mugs.”
grinding
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while some appreciate the exploration and discovery elements, many feel that the repetitive nature of redoing steps and achieving the same outcomes can become tedious and diminish overall enjoyment. The balance between satisfying curiosity and the risk of wasted runs is a common concern, with some achievements also noted as overly tedious. Overall, the grinding can detract from the game's potential, despite its engaging elements.
- “The reward near the end of the playthrough is learning more each time, but redoing all the previous steps was pretty tedious.”
- “When trial and error becomes tedious, there are less and less ways to satisfy my curiosity, and a run could be fully wasted by resulting in the same ending I'd already had, so the diminishing returns of enjoyment become too much of a risk for my personal taste.”
- “My only real complaints outside of that would be some of the achievements are a bit tedious, and the things that are specific to a particular clock time are not always obvious that's what's happening.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
The game offers significant replayability due to its numerous endings, encouraging players to revisit it to achieve different outcomes. However, some reviewers feel that the reliance on redoing content rather than introducing new elements makes the $15 price point seem high, suggesting it may be better to purchase on sale. Overall, the excitement of uncovering all possible endings enhances its replay value.
- “It was right up my alley for spoops, but even the replayability to get all endings was so exciting.”
- “Definitely has replay value considering there are a ton of different endings.”
- “I feel like I'm getting closer and closer to a good ending... definitely recommend as there are tons of endings, so it's really replayable!”
- “Since the replayability largely stems from redoing things over and over rather than new content, I personally think the price point of $15 is a bit high and recommend getting the game on sale.”
- “It was right up my alley for scares, but even the replayability to get all endings was not that exciting.”
- “Definitely lacks replay value considering there are not many different endings.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
The music in the game is described as a unique blend of ambient low-fi and tech trance, effectively enhancing the eerie atmosphere and visuals. While some players noted that they didn't recall much of the music beyond a few standout moments, others appreciated how the soundtrack adapts to the gameplay, contributing to the overall experience.
- “The music, visuals, and eerie atmosphere all worked perfectly for me.”
- “The art style is incredibly unique and vibrant; the music is like this weird mix of ambient low-fi and tech trance, and the game somehow presents itself as a horror game.”
- “The soundtrack was pleasant and adapts to what's currently going on.”
- “Don't recall much music beyond a few choice moments.”
- “The music is like this weird mix of ambient low-fi and tech trance, and the game somehow presents itself as a horror game.”
- “The art style is incredibly unique and vibrant, but the music doesn't leave a lasting impression.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game emotionally engaging, appreciating its wholesome puzzle atmosphere and the satisfaction of optimizing gameplay. Many enjoy the option to experience the game without horror elements, likening it to a relaxing gardening experience, which enhances its emotional appeal. Overall, the game successfully evokes positive feelings and a sense of accomplishment.
- “I wish more games had this wholesome puzzle atmosphere!”
- “Great game so far, but I played it due to another review saying you can play it without touching the horror elements and can just treat it like a gardening game.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game demonstrates excellent stability on the Steam Deck, with multiple users reporting a smooth performance.
- “It runs great on Steam Deck.”