It is about that time of day when a new retro styled, side scrolling platform game arrives in my inbox, and for the millionth time this year, here comes another contender.
The game in question is Gun N’ Runs, and I’m not sure there has ever been a more descriptive name than that. It’s been created by the developers at Statera Studio, and published by Storybird Studio, with the sheer essence of things neatly summed up in the title – you run, and you gun, and you die, and you swear.
For a kick off we’ll have a look at the storyline attached to the action here. Now, to be honest, it’s a throwaway bit of fluff, but I’ll explain it as best I can. We are the Conspiracy Squad – and we have been sent to a bunker in the Atacama Desert on a capture and rescue mission. And that is – frankly – all we need to know.
Luckily, the news is better when it comes to the presentation, with an appealing pixel art style to the characters and the levels that they traverse. Apparently, every level has been hand drawn, and while I can’t vouch for the veracity of this, the levels are all nice looking, varied in look and feel. The game is presented with a side on view, where our hero starts on the left and has to make it out of a door on the other side, and while there can be a lot of verticality in the levels, that is more or less the aim. So, it looks the part, but a special mention must go to the music which is very nice indeed, helping to drive the action as you enter each new screen. All in all, there are no complaints about the presentation to report.
So, let’s have a look at the action on display, and it is the traditional game of two halves, with the traversal mechanics coming down on one side of the scales, and the combat on the other. The way that Guns N’ Runs is constructed ensures the two elements are almost indivisible, but I will separate them out for the purposes of explaining what is going on. We’ll start with the traversal mechanics first, as they are a large part of the game. Each room of the bunker is a discrete level in and of itself, and while there are sections with a boss at the end, each room is a challenge.
Each of the eight members of the Conspiracy Squad (there are four selectable at the beginning, with the other four unlockable during gameplay) has not only a unique look, but also a slightly different narrative attached to their run throughs, which is nice to see. Now, the game plays out very fast first of all, and you will need your wits about you to make it through unharmed. Whichever character you choose, they all have the same moveset – namely a double jump and a dash that can be performed in any direction. And this dash is not only useful in clearing big gaps in the floor, say, but it is also useful when it comes to combat, as it will allow you to dash through harm. So spikes, lasers, even bullets can be dashed though, which comes in very handy.
Now, just to make things a little more spicy, there are certain things in the world that will allow you to reset or refill your dash, and these can be used to keep you in the air, almost indefinitely. In another little twist, if you refill your dash and dash again, you can also then add an extra jump on the end, and this rapidly becomes far too much for my aging fingers and creaky reflexes.
Suffice it to say that the controls for jumping about the place are tight and responsive, and while you will die (a lot) it isn’t down to slack in the controls. The dash move does have another function, beside moving and protecting you, and this is to smash the blocks that are scattered about the place. You can even dash down to break blocks below you, and this is very necessary too. All in all, dash will be your best friend in Guns N’ Runs.
There’s plenty of combat to get involved in too and the controls for this are pleasingly simple – you have a regular attack which fires bullets from your gun, and a super attack that can be unleashed when you have filled the meter in the top left enough. The majority of the enemies are pretty weak and go down after a few hits, and while there are lots of different types to destroy, they are, by and large, fairly squishy.
Get to a boss and it is a different matter, however. Using the first boss as an example (no spoilers here!) and he is a man in a giant tank that whizzes backwards and forwards trying to get you. His only weak point is his head, which is unwisely left sticking out of the top of the tank. Jumping and shooting is the order of the day, and it is no exaggeration to say that this took me a while to beat. And the rest are worse.
The challenge of Guns N’ Runs is certainly hard, with pinpoint jumping, shooting and dashing all required to make it through. You may find that you prefer to stick mainly to the casual difficulty, as it saves after each room is complete, but for the masochists, there are other difficulties to try. And that is pretty much it for Guns N’ Runs – at heart a simple concept, but one that is executed well and is still very challenging.
If you fancy a bit of gunning and running, then this is the game for you!
