A world of goo-ey goodness

World of Goo is a brilliant puzzle game. The concepts are deceptively simple, as they are with most great puzzle games. You use balls of 'goo' that attach to each other to form beams. These beams are like stretchy bands and result in interesting structures. The physics of the game is incredible and greatly enhances the enjoyment of the game. The game consists of mini puzzles, the aim of which is to feed the required number of goo balls into a vacuum pipe. You start from one point in the maze and build your goo structures to reach the pipe.

If that sounds simple (i.e. boring) so far, perish the thought. Just building the structures can get really challenging on some levels. In other levels figuring out the right structure for the level is the real challenge while the structure is itself quite easy to build. The toughest levels combine the two. You also get different types of goo balls as you go along to help you accomplish different tasks in a level. Despite the different types of balls, the focus firmly remains on solving the puzzle and building the structures, which is all good.

The level design is exceptional. Frequently, the levels are dynamic which results in very interesting solutions. One of my favourites involves using balloon goo balls and the wind to create a structure that is literally hanging in the air. The art direction and music is top notch. All the levels look very polished in addition to the aforementioned excellent puzzle design.

Minor quibbles include the background music, which is good but gets reused on so many levels that it can't help but feel repetitive. I would also have liked a way to save the game in the middle of a level. Without it, I end up having to redo one section several times while I figure out the rest of the puzzle (and fail repeatedly). This can get annoying in some of the longer levels.

The game has been on the top of the Wiiware charts since it's release and it's not hard to see why that it. A sequel to the game is already in the works. If they can keep the same innovative level design and iron out the quibbles (or not), they will have another excellent game on their hands.

10/10