Gunpoint

About

Gunpoint is a stealth puzzle game that allows you to rewire levels for creative problem-solving, as you take on the role of a freelance spy on missions to steal sensitive data. Using the Crosslink tool, you can manipulate security devices and guards to your advantage, and enjoy the game's noir-inspired storyline. Key features include rewiring levels, tricking guards, and investigating a complex story.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

98%

Audience ScoreBased on 15,936 reviews

story2.4k positive mentions

stability108 negative mentions

story
6,020 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
57%
2%
The story of "Gunpoint" is a humorous and engaging noir-inspired narrative centered around freelance spy Richard Conway, who becomes embroiled in a murder mystery involving corporate espionage. While the storyline is well-written and features witty dialogue, it is relatively short, typically taking around 2-4 hours to complete, which has led to some criticism regarding its length. However, the game offers replayability through multiple dialogue choices and a level editor that allows players to create and share custom missions, enhancing the overall experience.
- “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.”
- “But yes, you really don't have any meaningful control over how the plot progresses.”
gameplay
4,294 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
59%
40%
1%
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 stealthily. Reviewers highlight the engaging and humorous narrative, alongside the satisfying and fluid controls that make the gameplay enjoyable and accessible, despite the game's relatively short length of around 3-4 hours. While some players express a desire for more content and complexity, the overall consensus is that the unique mechanics and clever design provide a fun and memorable experience.
- “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.”
- “I wouldn’t call it 'puzzle': the rewiring mechanic, the way it is used in Gunpoint, ends up being not much more than an inconvenient control.”
- “The game is boring, the gameplay mechanics are nothing special.”
humor
2,842 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in "Gunpoint" is widely praised for its clever writing, engaging dialogue, and a mix of dark and absurd comedy that keeps players entertained throughout the game. Reviewers highlight the game's ability to blend humor with its stealth and puzzle mechanics, often resulting in genuinely funny moments and memorable character interactions. Despite its short length, the humor and witty achievements contribute significantly to the overall enjoyment, making it a standout title for fans of comedic gaming experiences.
- “The writing that pulls the story along is perfectly crafted, offering interesting characters, compelling storylines, and a lot of humor.”
- “It's outrageously funny and a genuine blast with interesting puzzles and a cool (if not utterly ridiculous) story.”
- “The messages by the creators had me laughing the whole time.”
music
2,022 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
32%
1%
The music in Gunpoint has been widely praised for its outstanding jazz noir soundtrack, which effectively enhances the game's atmosphere and complements its stealth mechanics. Players appreciate the duality of the soundtrack, with a smooth jazz theme that transitions to a more electronic sound during hacking sequences, creating an immersive experience. Overall, the music is considered one of the game's standout features, contributing significantly to its charm and replayability.
- “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 in gunpoint is absolutely amazing, it just sets the mood for this crime infested world you are traversing and it makes you feel like a freelance spy with the dark and mysterious tones that they have created to accompany this beautiful game.”
- “Simple graphics, ordinary music and dialogues.”
- “The soundtrack can get a bit repetitive.”
- “Although the soundtrack does get boring/annoying due to the lack of variety, the game is definitely worth its discounted price.”
graphics
1,000 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
44%
3%
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 difficult to read, many appreciate their ability to enhance the game's atmosphere and storytelling. Overall, the visuals are well-received for their artistic appeal and fitting integration with the gameplay, despite not being cutting-edge.
- “A unique and creative puzzle-shooter hybrid with a delightful noir aesthetic.”
- “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.”
- “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, but it all has the advantage to make every situation incredibly easy to read and respond to.”
- “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 amount of bugs is massive, controls are non-responsive, graphics flickering all the time, slow.”
replayability
982 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
60%
6%
The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with many players noting its short campaign length of around 2-4 hours, which limits the incentive to replay the main story. However, the inclusion of multiple endings, branching paths, and a level editor with Steam Workshop support significantly enhances replay value, allowing for varied playthroughs and user-generated content. Overall, while some players find the replayability satisfying, others feel it could be improved with more content.
- “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.”
- “Gunpoint has limited replayability, as once the story has been completed, there is not much reason to play through it again.”
- “The only negative I have for Gunpoint is its lack of replayability.”
- “Despite the game being rather short, it has limitless replay value as you find increasingly wacky solutions to eliminate guards and gather intel.”
atmosphere
310 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
68%
30%
2%
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, engaging dialogue, and a humorous yet dark tone, which together create a captivating experience that draws them into the game's world. Overall, the atmosphere is considered one of the standout features, contributing significantly to the game's enjoyment and replayability.
- “The music and sound effects also greatly enhance the game's atmosphere and add to the tension and excitement of each mission.”
- “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 atmosphere, portrayed through the soundtrack, gameplay and narrative is sublime.”
- “The graphics are basic, but not lacking, and the film noir soundtrack really sets the atmosphere.”
- “There is supposed to be, and without it it really took away any atmosphere the game had.”
- “Judging the game on the screenshots or videos doesn't do it any justice at all; though the graphics medium is utilizing the well-worn 'retro' pixel-art style, this doesn't detract from the atmosphere.”
stability
116 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
4%
93%
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting frequent bugs and glitches, particularly on macOS, where issues like freezing and unresponsive UI are common. While some users have not encountered significant problems, others note that crashes and gameplay interruptions can detract from the overall experience. Despite these stability concerns, many players still find the game enjoyable and fun, albeit with a warning for potential buyers about its technical issues.
- “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.”
- “It's a good game, runs great and has a workshop for endless levels and fun.”
- “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 the 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.”
grinding
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
23%
69%
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience. While some elements, like affording upgrades and certain puzzles, can feel tedious, many appreciate that the game avoids excessive grinding and maintains a balance that keeps gameplay engaging. The level design and autosave features help mitigate potential frustration, allowing players to retry without significant time loss, making the pursuit of achievements feel rewarding rather than laborious.
- “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.”
optimization
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
56%
9%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many players report smooth performance and appealing graphics, there are notable issues with screen size and resolution settings that are not well-optimized. Some users experienced occasional freezing when switching views quickly, and the game demands more resources than expected for a 2D pixel art title. Despite these drawbacks, the performance feedback system encourages replayability and skill improvement, enhancing the overall experience.
- “The game's comments on your performance make it pretty fun and strangely responsive as well.”
- “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.”
emotional
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
92%
8%
The game is praised for its emotional depth, with players feeling a strong sense of accomplishment and investment in their decisions throughout the gameplay. Despite a somewhat simplistic story, the combination of challenging puzzles, engaging dialogue options, and a well-crafted soundtrack creates a wholesome experience that resonates with players, making them feel smart and creatively empowered. Overall, it is described as a heartfelt game that successfully blends various genres while evoking a range of emotions.
- “2D platforming at its best; pleasant pixel graphics; lovely soundtrack; responsive gameplay; active workshop; challenging puzzles, and even if the story is short, it still made me feel as if my decisions were important and I was invested the whole time.”
- “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 development
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
"Gunpoint" excels in character development, featuring distinct personalities and appearances for each character, which enhances the overall narrative. Players appreciate the engaging story and the ability to shape the main character's traits, adding depth to the experience. The combination of simple yet detailed graphics and smooth animations further enriches the game's dark detective atmosphere.
- “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.”
monetization
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a monetization model free from microtransactions and ads, enhancing the noir experience without interruptions. However, some players feel that the level of player choice is not as extensive as suggested in promotional materials.
- “Also, the player doesn't have nearly as much freedom of choice as the advertising implies.”
- “Yes, I'm advertising.”
- “It adds a level of interaction to the story that kept me intrigued.”