Back in December, I wrote a preview about a little game called Reus. With an winsome artstyle, a world building mechanic and all within the trappings of a 2D god game, I must admit, my interest was peaked. The term God game has a few meanings, from just having control over a portion of a world, like in Sim City or Civilisation, to the more literal meaning, where you are referenced as a god and use your powers to create and sustain a world, with Black and White being the most recognisable. Reus definitely fits into that category. However, god game isn't necessarily the best definition for the game. Reus transcends the genre, playing by its rules to make a broader contextual point. The conceit of the game is that you start with a blank Eart, and you have four avatars to help you craft it. Each capable of their own specialised assets, you will soon find yourself soon terraforming an entire world to your own design. Soon life will begin to cultivate your new haven and you will see humanity grow into their own. Don't get too comfortable though, when it is all going swimmingly, you might find one of your villages turning on another, or maybe even onto you. Sitting down with Abbey Games, I got to talk to Manuel Kerssemakers (Programming) and Maarten Wiedenhof (Lead Artist). When you asking where the inception for the idea came from, they sent me a link to this short film. I'd encourage you to watch it. It plays as a great counterpart to the game and it is not hard to see the gap between this animation and the game that they finally put out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfI6UMBn5g0 "Everything is rooted in the theme of humanity's greed." said Manuel. "This idea shaped the entire game. This means that there is definitely a story in the game which we put their on purpose. However, after coming up with the main dynamics of the game Adriaan (lead designer) mostly focused on creating a game system that was fun to interact with. So the humans are definitely designed on a mechanical level as well." Reus succeeds on a level most games can only aspire to. While many games use a gameplay genre like and FPS or a RTS, those mechanics, the story and broader contextual point are not often synergised into a single experience. It is like when a game has an intricate story but feels like it needs to break it up with shooting sections just by default of being a game. But in Reus, the gameplay is integrated to help paint a broader context. Reus has changed my opinion on god games. While the central idea gives us dreams of being an all powerful former of worlds, it really shouldn't be. Even base comedy films like Bruce Almighty understand this point, while games in the past have sailed right past it in favour of indulging our own power fantasy. The truth is, being a god should be hard. It shouldn't be about destroying and creating, but more about managing and sustaining in the face of chaos. Martaan explained, "I think some gamers see Reus and will think "Yes! I want to smash humans!". They'll be disappointed, since Reus is much more about harmony." Manuel explains further by saying, "On first sight, the most noticeable thing about Reus is that you control four powerful giants that can transform a planet. When you play the game for a bit longer, you'll see that Reus is a game where you manage the people living on the planet by improving their environment, improving your giants, and exploring new styles of play. When you play it even longer, you discover that it can be quite a challenge to keep humankind prosperous yet kind. You might even find yourself fighting the people that you once cared for." People being bad and nature being good is not the most profound statement in the world. We hear it so often that we have almost come to take it for granted and glaze over when we hear it. From childhood shows to adverts in between the Voice, we are often hit over the head with the point of how humanity is evil and killing our planet. It is of course one of the most important issues we face in modern society, but it is one that is hard too put too much stock into, especially when packaged in such disposable advertising and appeals. However, art has a way of lasting longer and making a deeper impact, and Reus is certainly an example of games as art. By repackaging it into an attractive game package, it allows us to interact and experience the point in a new way. It won't turn your life upside down, and perhaps says more about the potential of games rather than making any sort of deep, world changing argument , but it is interesting to see a game tackle a issue so elegantly.
However, don't let me give off the impression that Reus is preachy nature propaganda. Maarten reiterates that that kind of thinking is left to the player. "One could say that Reus is about the greed of the human nature. Or about the balance between nature and humans. But we didn't want to make a game with a 'message', we just wanted to make Reus a good game. But if a player feels a deeper meaning, then for him or her, there is." His point is important. Reus is first and foremost a great game, any sort of statement second. Although calling it a 'god game' isn't entirely descriptive of the gameplay. It plays more like an evolving puzzle game than anything you might associate with a god game. Finding the right combination of plants, minerals and animals is the real key to allowing humanity to grow and to attain the achievements in the game. It is easy to get lost in this surprisingly robust management system with out even considering any sort of deeper personal meaning. Currently sporting a more than respectable 77 on MetaCritic, with its fair share of rave reviews, Reus is a bargain at £6.99 on Steam. You will likely get more than few hours out of it. I wholeheartedly endorse the game and it is one of my favorites of the year. Perhaps a little limited in its modes and a more precise goal implementation could go a long way, but that is nitpicking. Manuel told me that " we're working on localization and porting, and that we'll do at least one patch adding content", so fingers crossed there will be more to keep us playing in the future. Here is a trailer for the game, so you can decide for your self. Abbey Games know the game is niche, and it is now up to you to decide if you are part of that niche. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8M1icsCkgB4