As a proud Bri’ish man, I can confirm that a lot of us are absolutely crazy. We love pints of lager, fish and chips and make up strange words that only we can understand. However, I can’t think of one single game that perfectly captures the essence of the British public in a way that is both authentic and entertaining. Enter Thank Goodness You’re Here by Coal Supper, a 2D adventure game set in a fictional Northern English town and is one of the most bizarre and hilarious games recently released.
Slap til you drop
Described as the first ever “Slapformer,” Thank Goodness You’re Here is extremely easy to pick up and play. You move your character around with the control stick, jump with cross and slap with square. The game tasks you with helping the odd town residents with their strange requests. You’ll be locked in a certain part of the town and will have to figure out which residents need help, or what objects you can interact with by giving them a good ol’ slap. Each one of these requests are different and vary in terms of peculiarity. For example, in one stage you’ll help an overweight man get his hand out a grate after he was trying to get a “tuppance,” the next will have you helping a crazy homeless man called Brigadier Bean-Tin locate his seagulls.
However, some requests won’t be completed in the same area and will instead see you move on to the next part of the town. I found that this can pose two problems; the first is that you can’t go back to the previous area. As soon as you have initiated the trigger to move on, you won’t be able to go back until you progress further. It did make the world feel slightly linear and there were times where I wasn’t sure if I had got everything before I left. This brings me onto the second problem, the game does not make it clear that you have done everything in the area. There were times where I would find myself wandering around aimlessley wondering where I needed to go next, and I always had this feeling that I was missing something. Both of these are only minor issues, and didn’t hamper my overall experience when playing through the game.
A walk around the town
Thank Goodness You’re Here’s story sees you, a small balding yellow salesman, being sent to the fictional town of Barnsworth for a meeting with the town mayor. Whilst waiting for the mayor you acquaint yourself with the townsfolk and help with all sorts of odd jobs, with each one progressively getting stranger and stranger. Barnsworth itself is a unique and colorful looking place that has all the typical traits of a good old English town. Part of that has to go to the art design of the game. Whilst some may think it looks a bit simplistic with its flat colors and lack of shadows, it’s unique enough to stand apart from other similar animation styles.
Then there are the townsfolk who are easily the best part of the game. Every single one of the characters you meet are memorable with some of the funniest dialogue ever written for a game. A few of them can verge on the annoying side a little, but a majority of them are nothing short of hilarious. My favourites included Ronny the drunk Locksmith who always has a morning pint or two…or three, Jaspar the Scottish handyman who sounds like he’s been smoking 20 cigarettes a day, Roger who is always teased for his humongous head, and the garderner Herbert who is voiced by the legendary comedian Matt Berry.
Summary
Thank Goodness You’re Here is a crazy, hilarious but short game that perfectly encapsulates the strange inhabitants of Britain. Whilst it may not be for everyone, and it’s definitely a bit short for the price it’s asking for, its writing, jokes and charm make this a hilarious, unique game that takes you on such a bizarre journey through good ol’ England. Now if you excuse me I’m going to head down to my local pub for a cheeky pint and get some fish and chips on the way home, all in the name of king and country.
The Review
Superb
