So, you place a bomb with A (and by default are left sitting on top of it) and explode it with X. Place two bombs and then X will explode each in the order you placed them. Put two on top of each other with you sitting at the top and you\u2019ve got a sort of double-jump. Sit on one while the other blows you sideways\u2026well, this is the sort of stuff you need to figure out.<\/p>\n
When the \u00d6oo demo came out earlier this year<\/a>, it suggested that a second bomb was something you got very early on in the game, which may have led some to suspect that a third and a fourth would be arriving soon after. I\u2019m rather pleased to report that\u2019s not actually the case, or I suspect what has proven to be one of the most meticulously crafted puzzle-platformers I\u2019ve ever played might have become too woefully complicated. While there\u2019s great appeal in sandbox experimentation with four different bombs exploding in order, to discern the one desired combination for a puzzle solution would have been deeply demoralizing. Sticking to two, but having so much imagination for how they can be used in ever-more interesting ways, demonstrates an awful lot of smarts. In fact, you have just two until the very end of the game, but you\u2019ll never stop learning new ways to use them.<\/p>\n And this is the key. If this were a game about getting more and more bomb segments, or even being given fresh new abilities with which they interact, then you\u2019d have something like a traditional Metroidvania. But it isn\u2019t and you aren\u2019t. You get that second bomb about half an hour into the game, and then that\u2019s your lot. So why is it that \u00d6oo still plays like a Metroidvania? Because it\u2019s just so utterly, brilliantly designed.<\/p>\n Almost from the start, you\u2019ll encounter areas you can\u2019t yet reach. You then play on in another direction, with the gradual introduction of increasingly complex puzzles causing you to think more inventively about your tools and how you can use them. At a certain point, rather than being able to carry on any further, you\u2019ll reach a dead end in one of the game\u2019s occasional teleport rooms, and you\u2019re just left with the option to jump back to a part of the map where you can see an incomplete path. It\u2019ll be one of those areas you couldn\u2019t reach yet. Except, well, now you can. Not because you have a new skill, but because now you can think differently about how to approach the puzzle. And I\u2019ve never experienced anything like this before. It\u2019s quite extraordinary!<\/p>\n Gosh, that was a long and necessary route to make that one point, so let\u2019s move on to what else makes \u00d6oo such a great game. This is a follow-up to developer Nama Takahashi\u2019s\u00a0ElecHead<\/a>, itself a wonderful platform-puzzler, and shares its retro aesthetic, albeit now with a more vibrant color palette. Gorgeous looping animations mean the levels feel buoyant, and \u00d6oo itself is bursting with character, complete with falling asleep and snoring when left idle. And let\u2019s not put aside that the game is called \u00d6oo because that\u2019s exactly what the character looks like.<\/p>\n Another hugely important aspect of \u00d6oo is that it has no interest in wasting your time. To solve puzzles you need to experiment, and to do that, you need to take risks. There are a bunch of ways to die, but there\u2019s no significant penalty. Checkpoint flags are everywhere, meaning you\u2019re never forced to mindlessly retrace your steps. The only times you might be more than a screen away are when there\u2019d otherwise not be a means to backtrack\u2013which is to say, everything\u2019s been thought of, and you won\u2019t be infuriatingly trapped. Should you become completely flummoxed by a puzzle, however, Takahashi has recorded a video of his completing the entire game<\/a>, which you can easily scrub to find where you\u2019re currently stuck. At which point you will put your head in your hands and lament your folly for not having figured it out for yourself. Because, as I\u2019ve said, this game gives you everything you need right from the start.<\/p>\n Worry not when you see that walkthrough video is only 45 minutes long. This is the creator of the game, and in real life you\u2019ll be easily spending at least three or four hours before you\u2019ll reach the end credits. And what a splendid few hours it is! This is such a delightful game, and so wonderfully intelligent in its creation.<\/p>\n![\"Ooo](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ooo2.jpg\")
\u00a9Nama Takahashi \/ Kotaku <\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ooo4.jpg\")
\u00a9Nama Takahashi \/ Kotaku <\/p>\n