Indie games are unpredictable. Some overflow with creative storylines, unforgettable characters, or even a stimulating gameplay experience. However, there are numerous indie titles in the world that make you question the developer’s sanity, along with your own for playing it in the first place. Sometimes, you find yourself even enjoying them. With that stated, I take it upon myself to dig deep into the dark and quirky nooks and crannies of the video game community. This is The Odd and The Indiescribable.
To mix things up a bit, I steered in a different direction and took a ride through a game with an actual storyline. Well, sort of. Welcome to Bummertown takes the cake this week with its whimsical innovative world. Think Inside the Box drags you into its malfunctioning experience glitched with errors and birds flying upside down. Luckily, every corruption magically stumbled upon purposely wreaks havoc on your ordinary life.
The game commences with your immediate decision to choose either a male or female protagonist. Regardless of your gender preference, you serve a purpose in the defective Bummertown. It appears as if the game’s beloved character, Bedford, has gone missing. Since you’re the supposed hero, you must take the reins and interact with other Bummertown folks to inherit clues on his disappearance. Naturally, half of the characters bug out or float above the ground as if they’re possessed by a computerized demon. For your sake (and Bummertown’s), that’s luckily not the case.
Almost everything lacks stability in Bummertown. Nevertheless, the most fascinating feature of this expedition evolves from the NPCs and their awareness that they're well, NPCs. Every townsperson in Welcome to Bummertown emits a funky sense of humor. Furry critters scurrying around Bedford’s abandoned farm even possess some wit, though a tad dark. Considering the characters are well aware of the fourth wall, no one blinks an eye at pop-up errors. The content nature of those inhabiting Bummertown raises a bit of concern. That's just part of the gig.
In order to find Bedford, you're obligated to collect Logic Modules. These nifty components present as a key to unlocking areas originally inaccessible in Bummertown. However, completing various minigame puzzles appears to be the only way to acquire them. Some puzzles are elementary while others a tad maddening. Nonetheless, the riddles add a bit of challenge to Welcome to Bummertown, where the gameplay is mediocre, at best.
At first, Welcome to Bummertown genuinely piqued my interest. The comical dialogue and whimsical characters kept me on my toes and hyped me for what was to come. After the continuous fetch quests though, finding Bedford became more of a headache rather than an intriguing mystery. The tiresome actuality of running back and forth reduced my initial excitement. Nonetheless, the colorful NPCs and their self-awareness within the video game world kept me going to the end.
Welcome to Bummertown is one of those experiences. A short game you play on a rainy day, ponder for a while and then watch as it collects digital dust. The experience itself is quite strange and creepy, but worth taking a gander at. Curious? Head on over Welcome to Bummertown’s Steam page and experience the unorthodox universe for yourself.
TechRaptor covered Welcome to Bummertown on Steam with a copy provided by the developer.
What do you think of Welcome to Bummertown? Do you have any bizarre games you'd like to see covered? Let us know in the comments!
