Untitled Goose Game is one of those indie titles that you see on the shelf or on a digital storefront and just pass right by, assuming it’s another of the endless tide of garbage that inhabit the proverbial bargain bin of the video game industry. You would be wrong to assume that, as developer House House managed to craft a sleeper hit this year. By blending puzzle and stealth mechanics, the game teaches you one main lesson, geese are dicks. The player takes the role of a particularly troublesome cousin of the mallards, and is given one task, to annoy everyone around them. You will very quickly discover that despite the simple visuals and seemingly innocent veneer, there’s a avian psycho hiding in all of us. Going around stealing people’s hats has never been so fun.
The game originally debuted on PC and Nintendo Switch on September 20th, and a PlayStation 4 and Xbox One release on December 17th is what seems to have helped the game explode in popularity. Of course it certainly didn’t hurt that the game embraced the full “YouTuber Bait” label and enjoyed a fair bit of a boon from YouTubers and streamers playing the title.
Untitled Goose Game not only enjoyed a huge burst of sales that led to its success, but it also gained a fair bit of critical notoriety. Fans and reviewers all fell for the concept straight away. Untitled Goose Game is just plain and simple fun, and the basic premise can even lure in casual gamers. This is likely one of it’s bigger strengths and could help explain why it sold like hot cakes.
If you haven’t heard of this strange indie game, check Untitled Goose Game out in the trailer below.
