Like clockwork, October has rolled around and we're treated to another stacked lineup of demos in the latest rendition of Steam Next Fest. While there's a disappointing amount of video games using AI to generate art assets, there's also many gems to root out. But one game I've been looking forward to trying is My Arms Are Longer Now: a 2D stealth-comedy game from Australian studio Toot Games, and aptly published by comedy-quiz aficionados, Jackbox Games.
After seeing the quirky humour and concept in the reveal trailer, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to try out the demo for My Arms Are Longer Now. It's a humorous premise that's setup by a nicely animated intro sequence of someone telling a detective about a crime committed by a long, snake-like arm.
You can then select the demo mission which takes place on a train. Instantly the intro art style translates into a scene with a fixed camera. But it's the character art and fluid animations that give the game personality. While the first scene is a tutorial, I couldn't help but wait and listen to the initial character speak. The Australian humour is similar to British comedy, so I found myself laughing at the purposely strange lines and top notch comedic delivery. And I'm happy to say that the comedy keeps up throughout the whole demo.
Image: My Arms Are Longer Now - Train
But let's get back to the game. You play as an arm, stretching your way around obstacles to steal as many things as you can. Each level has a list of main objectives to steal, and then, hidden side objectives to find if you choose to explore the level. While your main objective is to steal a briefcase that's handcuffed to a woman's wrist, you can also venture outside to the roof to collect pigeons, or knock a creepy monster off the train.
Yet it isn't as easy as that. As an arm, you can twist your way under and over seats, slap things, pinch to grab items or open doors, move vertically, and recoil your arm to complete your thefts. But the further you go, the more things you need to do to complete a mission. Such as a guard that you need to trip up by blocking his path and making your arm rigid. Or finding your way outside the train to the driver's compartment to slam the emergency break to be able to proceed to the next train carriage.
Although, it's the arm controls where My Arms Are Longer Now falters a little. I found the controls to be a little clunky as the arm didn't always feel responsive to my movements, and the collisions with the environment often felt unfair. It felt like a slightly more precise version of a Surgeon Simulator type game. While it felt unfair at times, it ultimately didn't bother enough to want to stop, as it's still a fun game with amusing humour.
If Toot Games can refine the gameplay just a touch, so that it matches the quality of the rest of My Arms Are Longer Now, they could have a rare gaming comedy hit on their hands. As after the great Thank Goodness You're Here, I've been waiting for something similar toned tile to come about again. So, I can't wait to see how My Arms Are Longer Now turns out when it releases.
* Early Demo Provided By Publisher
