Gravity Bone

4 Clear your Schedule
… or not?

This game is proof that there is still room for the Quake 2 engine… yes Quake 2! There is an impressive amount of style and story in this game. So much so that when you get through it, you’ll be jarred and shocked the moment the game is over and you’re left looking at your desktop again.

The rest of this review may be laden with spoilers but needs to be said.

The moment the game climaxes, you be wondering what you did wrong and if you could have done something differently. The sudden moment of helplessness the game slaps on you is jarring and refreshing at the same time.

If there were awards for best short story/game. this would be on the short list.

5 More style than my entire wardrobe.
The visual merits of Gravity Bone are self-evident. So I’m going to talk more about the level design. (Some spoilers follow if you haven’t played it already:)

GB is more or less perfect in terms of pacing and length; three short acts, the bare minimum for a story that doesn’t wear out its welcome. The first mission is crucial in that it sets up the expectation about how the second mission will end (with you going to the elevator and pushing the button) – and when that “goes wrong” it’s a wonderful and surprising departure from what you expected especially since it’s only the second mission!

But what makes this “twist” in level design better is how it fits into the entire theme of classic noir espionage – the “twist” was literally watching you as you entered the level, and you probably looked out through the window she shoots to escape. The resulting chase scene is pretty great in several ways: (1) it has only the illusion of difficulty enough to make you feel competent, (2) the dinner party setpiece is one of the few times a game has ever made me feel embarrassed, (3) the appearance of blood (namely yours) is pretty jarring in a cartoonish game, (4) the wordless flashbacks expand the story to as much as you want to imagine.

Did I mention that there’s no spoken dialog other than the brilliant numbers stations-esque briefcases? So many games rely on text to convey ideas. From explaining controls to your character’s backstory, GB uses design to do it.

If you liked this, also try Brendon Chung’s Barista 2. Very different stylewise, but also very similar.

3 Great, but too short.
Very original and fun, but it´s too short, i suppose it´s unfinished.

5 A fantastically short game
A game with a very fresh style that pulls you right in. The game is surprisingly short, and begging for a full game in the same style, but this is still a wonderful little game.

4 You'll feel like a secret agent for 5 seconds, then it ends
Very slick, fun game. Not a lot of challenge, except one annoying jumping part, but it’s fun and really creative. The only complaint is that it is really short, which is a shame. Hopefully the creator will make a longer version.

5
Gravity Bone is some kind of first person adventure, in which you follow different orders, e.g taking a photo of some birds or finding a guy with red clothes in a crowd of yellow guys. Sounds simple, and that´s the way I “understood” the game. You should relax, and try out different things. It is not very hard and also very short, but the great atmosphere and the very good graphics are more important.

In a conclusion, Gravity Bone is not full game, but the graphics, the atmosphere and the gameplay in general is great.

3 Waiting for the full game
I REFUSE to believe that this is the full game. It has so much potential… This thing HAS to be just a teaser !

4 Secret Agent Man
Mondo Medicals if it were a comedy. Very cool but, just as you start really enjoying it, it ends.