I love games where I have to construct things to solve puzzles. That was a huge draw for me to games like Incredible Machines and more recent knock-offs. You are given a set of materials and have to assemble the right configuration to achieve a goal. Sometimes its knocking a ball into a hole, or making a wheel turn. In this game, its nothing that complex. All you have to do it build a structure to enable moving entities to access the “suction-end” of a pipe. Then, the rest is done for you and you move on to the next challenge. However, the twist is that your material is a bundle of moving, cooing blobs of…. Goo. They are sticky, drippy and like wrangling up dust bunnies with a soggy spaghetti noodle.

World of Goo is a dynamic puzzle-type game that is deceptively simple in the objective. It does seem simple as described, but the dynamics of the Goo make it a challenge that will make you bang your head, then come back for more. The Goo are little black or green blobs of tar-like material that are constantly in motion. It is like watching ants on blades of grass. They move back and forth, up and down. If you move one, they create a “beam” which is like a girder of sorts. The idea is to stack or shift them and build a structure that can bridge a gap and lead the whole group to the flanged end of a pipe. Once there, the Goo is slurped up like lemmings and deposited into a jar — while keeping count of how many make it to the end. Yes, you can lose some “soldiers” in your mission. There are Goo hazards that will eliminate them and create ghosts. Floating Goo eyes that can be activated back into service — at a cost to your progress. One step forward (to reclaim a Goo ball), and two steps back.

The hazards can be fire or spinning blades, which make the process of building your solutions very tedious and tricky. The Goo is not always predictable, though they follow physics brilliantly. If you do not have a grasp of gravity, motion and balance, you should stay away from this game. To build a “bridge” that goes over a dangerous obstacle, you have to do constant “what if?” thinking. EX: If you put this (Goo) ball here, the shift of weight will do this. It is sometimes like playing a sticky variation of Jenga. That feeling that you know you are on the verge of pushing your luck and one more move in a certain direction will bring the whole thing down. In the World of Goo, that is often.

When you think you are getting the hang of it, the dynamics of the Goo (or objectives) changes to amplify the challenge. Just when I was getting used to the limitations and abilities of the black Goo, it switches to green and you find that their characteristics are painfully different. Such diversity keeps the otherwise minimal game very interesting. The game lacks depth, but it’s a very nice visit while you’re there. The mysterious “sign painter” leaves breadcrumbs in the form of scribbled notes- scattered within the game. Some of them are hints on playing a level, while others seem to be ripped from the personal journal of a programmer. They are fun little nuggets, in any case.

The audio is a mix of cute and mesmerizing. The Goo make little noises that communicate emotion without actually speaking. Its more like “Goo-coo.” The other sounds are organic and feel in sync with the groovy Goo environment.

The visuals are a surreal, cartoonish, and just plain fun to look at. It almost has the simplistic look of being a Flash game, but without the negative limitations of that format. It doesn’t break any new ground in its graphical exploration, but does work very well with what it has. This is a perfect lesson in substance over style, proving that you don’t need the latest graphics card to have some awesome fun.

I get the same thrill playing World of Goo that I got while playing the previously mentioned Incredible Machine series. You are given an objective and all the tools/Goo you need to complete the task. You know you have what you need, but sometimes still swear it “can’t be done.” Take a break, come back and voila — it works. You can replay the levels if you wish, and share your successes with the online Goo-munity (I just made that term up!). Since it does not have the depth that other puzzlers have, playing and competing in that manner gives it a bit more replay value. 

Gameplay: 8.5
The game is simple to start and Master the basics, but offers a challenge in the execution of your movements. No complicated manual is necessary to jump in and have a gooey good time, which is always a benefit. The physics are they key, so knowing how things work within those “laws” is more important than anything. 

Graphics: 7.0 
It looks like a flash game to me. There isn’t a lot of detail to distract you, but what is there is nice to look at. The characters (Goo) are round, gooey, full of life and move about in a world straight out of a cartoon. There is a fine line to walk when you have minimal graphics going on. You have to deliver in other ways, which this game does — very well.

Sound: 6.5
With the focus being clearly on the execution of the gameplay, and minimal development on the project (two programmers), the audio is a minor part of the game. I liked the funny sounds made by the Goo themselves, but not much else will catch your attention, and that’s Ok I was so honed in on my objectives, I wouldn’t pay attention to a John Williams score-- if it had one. The only sounds I vividly recall were those made by me — most of which is not repeatable to a general audience.

Difficulty: Medium
Rating the game’s level of difficulty is difficult to do, as the entire game is dependent on the player’s grasp of Newton’s Law, construction and planning. It is rarely easy, but rather complex in situations that appear, at first, to be simple to solve. You can also skip, which is a nice way to temporarily move on without totally quitting.

Concept: 7.5 
The medium (Goo) used is new to me. I had heard the phrase “…like trying to nail Jello to a wall,” and always thought that was funny. Here we have a game that asks you to use a fluid, drippy, sticky material to build structures — to reach end points. If the Great Pyramids were made of this stuff, they’d have been buried in a sandstorm within 10 minutes of their completion. It’s a great mix of using a new material to accomplish a not-so-new objective. Being able to publicly share your success in a competitive manner makes the experience more unique — for a “simple” puzzle game.

Overall: 8.0
This is a game that will make you hold your breath, and curse at your monitor (I have since apologized to my LCD). I like that it is simple in design, but deep and complex in completion of objectives. Replaying a level gives you the chance to hone the skills you develop. It is interesting to re-visit a level and use less Goo in your replay situation, once you have a better feel for how things work. It’s a fun self-challenge to use less resources and be more efficient on a replay, but being able to share those results with the online Leaderboard. That harkens back to the not-so-old days of seeing your name listed in a public High Scores venue. It’s your chance at a 15 minutes of Goo-Fame. Know your physics, learn how to handle the various colors of compliant Goo, and prepare for some moments that teeter on the edge of insanity. The overall experience may be short— compared to others, but it’s a very enjoyable and brain-taxing game. I look forward to Goo 2, or whatever else those guys can think up — in the clever World… of Goo.