Playing Every Game in the Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality
PEGBRJE: Dungeons of Loot and Play With Gilbert — Remake
No violence, just exploration.
Dungeons of Loot is an looting adventure game created by Luke Parker, an indie dev and author based out of the UK. Instead of players exploring a dungeon with their weaponry and wits, they will be exploring a dungeon that is seemingly empty of any and all life in the hopes of acquiring that sweet loot that is just lying around.
Dungeons of Loot lives up to its name. The entire dungeon is full of loot to be acquired whilst somehow being void of all enemies. As such, there’s no need for weapons or powers, just an inquisitive mind. As players explore, there are lots of items on the ground that are mere distractions from the loot that can be found, such as the bizarre gold items on the ground or flowers that smell pretty.
This sounds a little too safe though, doesn’t it? As if there is no threat, but there is; the ability to get thrown in to the empty void of space. There will be white squares around the map that seem eerie, almost pulsating with energy. These are void squares, and if the player ever touches them they are sucked in to the void and lose all progress and loot. Avoiding them is not necessarily a problem, but thanks to the lack of enemies players will be running around at full speed without much care in the world, which can make them reckless. There are also pressure plates littering the map that can alter the walls of the dungeon, making it easy for players to accidentally trap themselves in locations that are not safe to escape.
Thanks to its inclusion of a story mode, players will be able to see how the ‘Dungeons of Loot’ came about, finding the pieces of paper that detail where they are and how these places came to be. If this is not to your speed, there’s a random mode where you can simply go until you lose to the void, and record your score there. It’s a small title that uses its randomness to great effect, giving that rogue-like vibe without having to fight anything at all. If you are looking for a more pacifist adventuring game, this might be exactly it.
Play With Gilbert — Remake is a open-world sandbox adventure game created by Team V, who brought one of my favourite titles of the bundle, STARDROP. This time around players won’t be exploring a derelict ship, but instead playing with a kitty named Gilbert and exploring a beach resort island.
As somewhat standard for sandboxes, it is hard to explain Play With Gilbert without stating that ‘players can do anything’. After customizing and naming their kitten (default name Gilbert), players will be dropped in to the world with a clock and many little objectives that they can get. There are other cats to meet, items to acquire and fish to find, but these are just side objectives to the main objective; have fun.
Anything that one could dream of doing on a resort as a cat is possible, from gliding around the island to eating to driving around delivering items to others. Exploration is the name of the game, and there are secrets hidden everywhere for players to find that aren’t stated as objectives, like rare new hats. Time even moves forward so players will get to experience the region at night, or during other seasons if playing for long enough — meaning Gilbert can romp around in the snow.
Designed as an age-inclusive game that allows kids to explore and do whatever they wish, Play With Gilbert is a fantastic example of a sandbox game full of love. It truly wishes for players to do whatever they wish no matter where they go, and even includes the ability to play locally with another person to add even more fun.
Again, I might be sounding a bit vague, but the core concept of the game is simple; the island is yours for the exploring, and you are an adorable cat. Go wild, no matter what age you are.
