Sludge Life
Review

Sludge Life (2020) is an open world adventure where you play as Ghost, a graffiti artist determined to put his tag all over Sludge City. You play in an adult world full of lived-in locations and intriguing characters. It requires some caution, but beyond the themes this is a tongue-in-cheek take on these kinds of gangster games. As you encounter the wacky characters and strange world you discover a gritty mystery about how life on the street can be homely and endearing as well as edgy and dark.

Sludge Life is not big on explanation or tutorials, preferring the player to find things out through trial and error, exploration and social interaction with the characters. The gameplay incorporates parkour moves as you climb up onto rooftops, and point and click actions as you investigate machinery and talk to the inhabitants.

The main quest of the game is to paint graffiti everywhere, however there is also a puzzle element that unfolds as you engage with the characters. These culminate in three separate endings depending on how you play.

If you do not mind toilet gags, fart jokes and quests that have you smoking and getting high, and you enjoy offbeat and weird experiences then this game has plenty to entertain you.

Our examiner, Andrea Walney, first checked Sludge Life 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 19 months ago.