Goblins & Grottos is a stealth/puzzle platformer with big plans for their estimated 2016 release. In addition to the built-in single player campaign, Goblins & Grottos will also contain a level editor, falling lockstep inline with the ongoing multiplayer build-n-share platformer trend.
For the pre-Alpha demo campaign, you play as a goblin hellbent on destroying the adventurers that have invaded your home and killed your family. You’ll sneak around the level, disposing of your enemies with the only skill at your disposal: pushing heavy objects off ledges. The game’s pixel art is charming with the minimal detailing thus preventing levels from feeling over-designed and busy.
Unfortunately, Goblins & Grottos makes a few miscalculations in their pre-Alpha demo, especially in regards to the controls and the use of real physics for in-game objects. Jumping is delayed by a fraction of second, making any wall-climbing sections especially irritating, and the game has some major issues with the properly clipping to objects when dragging them. Goblins & Grottos also suffers when its comes to the quality of its humor writing as the guards’ conversations feel like a stale retread of typical fantasy RPG satires. But with some careful rewrites, the plight of the goblin hero could still hit that sweet spot occupied by other franchises like the comic Order of the Stick or the tabletop game Munchkin.
Goblins & Grottos is holding a sign-up period for their closed Beta test right now, so if you find you enjoy the mechanics presented in the pre-Alpha demo, now’s the time to get in on the ground floor!
Note: To wall-climb, hold down the “shift” key when jumping to cling and then scale the wall. If you let go of the “shift” key you will fall, so watch out!
UPDATE: Beta No Longer Available
