Gunpoint
- June 3, 2013
- Suspicious Developments
- 4h median play time
Gunpoint is a delightfully lean experience
Gunpoint is a stealth puzzle game where you play as a freelance spy. Hack security systems to rewire them, create distractions, and complete missions without getting caught. Use your wits and gadgets to outsmart guards and achieve your objectives in this engaging and challenging game.
Reviews
- Engaging and humorous writing that keeps players entertained throughout the game.
- Unique gameplay mechanics that allow for creative problem-solving and multiple approaches to each level.
- Short but sweet experience that doesn't overstay its welcome, making it easy to replay.
- The game is quite short, typically taking only 2-4 hours to complete, which may not justify the full price for some players.
- Limited replayability outside of community-created levels, as the main story doesn't change significantly with different choices.
- Some players experienced bugs and issues with resolution settings, particularly on Mac.
- story3,028 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The story in "Gunpoint" is a humorous and engaging noir-inspired narrative that follows freelance spy Richard Conway as he navigates a web of corporate espionage and murder. While the plot is relatively short, typically taking around 2-4 hours to complete, it features witty dialogue and multiple choices that can slightly alter the outcome, adding to its replayability. Players often find the writing clever and entertaining, making the experience enjoyable despite the brevity of the main storyline.
“The writing that pulls the story along is perfectly crafted, offering interesting characters, compelling storylines, and a lot of humor.”
“It rounds the experience out with excellent pixel graphics, an exquisite soundtrack, and a story that, while fixed, contains characters, events, and enough comedy to hook you early on and keep you running with it to see where it's going.”
“Despite being a 3-hour game, the story is really captivating and although there are a lot of silly parts, it still manages to keep a good mix between funny and serious.”
“The story is fixed.”
“You really can't affect the outcome very much in any given direction, so you don't replay it for the story; you replay it for the puzzle.”
“You really don't have any meaningful control over how the plot progresses.”
- gameplay2,153 mentions
- 59 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "Gunpoint" is widely praised for its innovative mechanics, particularly the rewiring system that allows players to manipulate electronic devices creatively to solve puzzles and navigate levels. Reviewers highlight the engaging stealth elements, humorous writing, and the satisfying feeling of executing complex plans, although many note that the game is relatively short, typically offering around 3-5 hours of playtime. Overall, the combination of clever mechanics, a witty narrative, and a stylish presentation makes for a fun and memorable experience, despite some players wishing for more content and depth.
“The gameplay makes me feel like a spy with all of the cool gadgets in the game.”
“The puzzle gameplay is simple, yet extremely satisfying and enjoyable to use alongside working your fancy new gadgets into your playstyle of breaking into places.”
“The clever use of mechanics and engaging gameplay make up for its brevity.”
“My biggest complaint is that I don't think it goes far enough with its gameplay premise or story.”
“The game is boring, the gameplay mechanics are nothing special.”
“The gameplay is unique and while the puzzles are easy, getting them within the time limit can sometimes be a bit challenging.”
- humor1,424 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in "Gunpoint" is widely praised for its clever writing, engaging dialogue, and a mix of dark and absurd comedy that enhances the gameplay experience. Players appreciate the witty character interactions and the humorous achievements, which contribute to a lighthearted atmosphere despite the game's serious themes. Overall, the game's humor is described as a standout feature, making it both entertaining and memorable.
“The writing that pulls the story along is perfectly crafted, offering interesting characters, compelling storylines, and a lot of humor.”
“It's a compelling blend of humor and intrigue that had me laughing out loud while eagerly anticipating what would happen next.”
“The dialogue options are hilarious, gameplay is good and all of the puzzles were enjoyable.”
- music1,014 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 32 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The music in *Gunpoint* has been widely praised for its outstanding jazz-inspired soundtrack, which effectively enhances the game's noir atmosphere. Players appreciate the clever integration of two distinct soundtracks that shift between jazz and synth styles during gameplay, adding depth to the experience. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a highlight of the game, with many players expressing a desire to purchase it separately due to its quality and fitting ambiance.
“Even better, like the game it's two soundtracks rolled into one - whenever you go into hacking mode, the jazz-inspired noir music shifts to a synth-styled version of the exact same music as befits a technical hacking minigame.”
“The soundtrack is a must-have as well, as you just can't get awesome music like that anywhere else.”
“The music is great and fits very well in the theme of the game.”
“The music is simple but won't grate your nerves.”
“The soundtrack does get boring/annoying due to the lack of variety.”
“The music in this game is passable.”
- graphics500 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming pixel art style that effectively captures the noir aesthetic, blending retro visuals with a modern twist. While some players find the graphics simplistic or occasionally bland, many appreciate their ability to convey atmosphere and support the gameplay, enhancing the overall experience. The combination of smooth animations, detailed environments, and a fitting soundtrack contributes to a visually appealing and immersive game world.
“The game's graphics are stylish and minimalist, with a pixelated art style that perfectly fits the game's mildly cyberpunk, noir setting.”
“My favorite aspect of this game is unquestionably the aesthetic, which includes the simple art style, excellent lighting design that sets the dark detective mood, and fantastic noir soundtrack.”
“Gunpoint has a unique art style, combining elements of retro-futuristic design with a noir-style aesthetic.”
“Unfortunately, I have some complaints, and all of them regard the graphics, from bland art style to how everything looks flat, to how details are lost when too zoomed out.”
“The game is unplayable on my computer because a graphical error blurs the screen, making the game nothing more than a collection of random blocks.”
“The graphics might not be cutting edge 3D, but they are functional and have a certain charm in their art style.”
- replayability497 mentions
- 34 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is generally regarded as high, with many players appreciating the various ways to approach missions, multiple endings, and the inclusion of a level editor and community-created content. While the main story is relatively short, typically taking around 2-4 hours to complete, the ability to replay levels for different outcomes and achievements adds significant value. However, some reviews note that once the story is finished, the incentive to replay may diminish, leading to mixed opinions on its overall replayability.
“Drawing inspiration from the 'Metal Gear Solid V' philosophy, it allows players to complete levels in various ways, encouraging experimentation and replayability.”
“The game is really absorbing and has huge replayability due to the variety of possible ways to complete levels.”
“With multiple endings, the replayability is great, as you can explore different ways to interact with characters and complete missions.”
“Gunpoint has limited replayability, as once the story has been completed, there is not much reason to play through it again.”
“The only real downside to this game, as others have pointed out, is the lack of replayability which compounds the shortage of game time.”
“Despite the game being rather short, it has limitless replay value as you find increasingly wacky solutions to eliminate guards and gather intel.”
- atmosphere158 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive noir aesthetic, enhanced by a jazzy soundtrack and clever writing that evokes classic detective stories. Players appreciate the combination of pixel art and atmospheric sound design, which together create a captivating and engaging experience. The humor and dialogue further enrich the atmosphere, making it a standout feature of the game.
“The atmosphere of the whole experience is really neat.”
“The film noir atmosphere, along with its smooth jazz soundtrack, makes it relaxing to play through, the dynamic puzzles keep you engaged, and the writing keeps you entertained.”
“The incredible design and features of this game combined with witty writing and such an atmospheric music makes this game one of the most warm and enjoyable experiences you can get in a video game.”
“The graphics are basic, but not lacking, and the film noir soundtrack really sets the atmosphere.”
“The thriller atmosphere and the recall to the old bitmap games of the 90s creates a good surrounding for a crime.”
“Sure, the story is dumb in a noir way, but the jazzy music, somber atmosphere, and open gameplay made me love the world anyway.”
- stability58 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 2 % neutral mentions
- 93 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's stability is a mixed bag, with many players reporting frequent bugs and glitches, particularly on macOS, where issues like freezing and unresponsive UI are common. While some users experienced minimal problems and found the gameplay enjoyable, others noted that these technical issues could significantly detract from the experience, making the game unplayable at times. Despite the fun mechanics and engaging gameplay, the game's stability issues remain a notable concern for potential players.
“It is not a perfect masterpiece, but it is also not buggy or flawed in a bad way.”
“The game is solid; no glitches or bugs that I've seen yet.”
“I have seen no glitches or bugs, and all objectives and 'things to do' are clearly laid out.”
“A pity only is that it is extremely buggy under macOS, requiring regular save & restart; otherwise, the UI becomes unresponsive.”
“The game is good, but almost all the time you get stuck in circuit mode and you just can't play the game because it freezes like every 25 seconds; it's really annoying and makes the game unplayable.”
“I do not recommend buying if you only have a Mac, though; the game is very buggy and freezes at will, causing you to either restart the game or wait 30 seconds for the bug to go away.”
- grinding26 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 19 % neutral mentions
- 69 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience. While some describe the process of upgrading characters and achieving 100% completion as tedious, many appreciate that the game design prevents it from becoming overwhelmingly grindy, maintaining a balance that keeps the gameplay engaging. The level design and mechanics often mitigate potential tedium, allowing for enjoyable challenges without excessive repetition.
“Not grindy either, so 100% the achievements on it as well.”
“You also can retry easily; the game autosaves a lot. In addition, the levels aren't tediously long, and you can simply restart the whole level without wasting too much time.”
“But what makes this a good thing is that they aren't really tedious or overwhelmingly hard.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“It's tedious to find where the circuit box is, see a glimpse of which devices it connects to, and then realize that circuit box is in a locked room and you have to look for another circuit box or mess with some other circuitry to even reach that box.”
“My problem was the gameplay being too tedious and the rules being too inconsistent to form any kind of puzzle-solving strategy.”
- optimization20 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many players report smooth performance and appealing graphics, some experience issues with screen size and resolution settings, as well as occasional freezing when switching views. The game encourages skillful play through performance-based rewards, enhancing replayability despite some technical shortcomings. Future updates are anticipated to improve the editor's optimization further.
“Ambush your enemies and knock them out (or, if you're particularly bloodthirsty, kill) if you must, but the pinnacle of performance here is to be a ghost.”
“Good replay value too, with branching paths and an ending that varies based on your performance and dialogue choices.”
“Gives you ratings on your performance per mission and makes you want to come back and A+ all the levels that you didn't on your first playthrough.”
“The downside is that screen size and resolution settings are not optimized well.”
“Some performance notes: it's more demanding than a 2D pixel art game warrants.”
“This editor is not totally optimized with the workshop as of me writing this, but it will be in the future.”
- emotional15 mentions
- 93 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
Players find the game emotionally engaging, praising its ability to evoke feelings of accomplishment and investment through challenging puzzles and meaningful choices. The well-crafted storyline, complemented by a lovely soundtrack and immersive gameplay, enhances the emotional experience, making players feel smart and connected to their characters. Overall, the game is described as a heartfelt journey that resonates with a wide range of gamers.
“Really enjoyed my playthrough; it could be challenging, but every level made me feel accomplished.”
“The storyline is well written, immersive, humorous, and heart-breaking at the same time.”
“And the ability to choose different dialogue options in between missions made me feel more invested in my character.”
- character development5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
"Gunpoint" excels in character development, featuring distinct personalities and appearances for each character, which enhances the engaging story. Players appreciate the ability to shape the main character's traits, adding depth to the narrative. The combination of humor and a well-crafted storyline further enriches the overall experience.
“The game's character designs are especially notable, with each character having a distinct personality and appearance.”
“Great story, lots of character development, and you can choose how you want the main character to be.”
“The story and character development is just icing on the cake, really funny icing.”
- monetization5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game features a monetization model free from microtransactions and ads, enhancing the immersive noir experience. However, players note that the level of choice is not as extensive as suggested by promotional materials.
“Also, the player doesn't have nearly as much freedom of choice as the advertising implies.”