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Play Overview
The Gunk (2021) is a narrative adventure where you play one sister of a pair of space explorers struggling for resources, who find a new planet with new alien wildlife. You play by traversing the environment sucking up toxic waste, harvesting materials, solving puzzles and battling enemies. It stands out for its sibling story of survival and the gloopy gunk parasite you need to free the world from.
As you explore the alien planet you discover all sorts of environments: canyons, jungles and caves, but all of these have been corrupted by a black slime-like parasite gunk. Using a vacuum-like tool (reminiscent of Super Mario Sunshine) you clear areas of gunk, revealing healthy life underneath. There are many types of enemies that have formed from the gunk, from small creatures to large beasts. As you progress you discover a mysterious ancient civilisation and work to save the planet from the polluting goo.
As you remove the gunk and clean up each area, wildlife thrives and you can then scan the environment to learn about the world and what to do next. From the developers behind Steamworld Heist, it offers a strong character-based narrative with scenic landscapes but retains a focus on fun and tight exploration and collection gameplay.
Our examiner, Andy Robertson, first checked The Gunk 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 10 months ago.
As you explore the alien planet you discover all sorts of environments: canyons, jungles and caves, but all of these have been corrupted by a black slime-like parasite gunk. Using a vacuum-like tool (reminiscent of Super Mario Sunshine) you clear areas of gunk, revealing healthy life underneath. There are many types of enemies that have formed from the gunk, from small creatures to large beasts. As you progress you discover a mysterious ancient civilisation and work to save the planet from the polluting goo.
As you remove the gunk and clean up each area, wildlife thrives and you can then scan the environment to learn about the world and what to do next. From the developers behind Steamworld Heist, it offers a strong character-based narrative with scenic landscapes but retains a focus on fun and tight exploration and collection gameplay.
Our examiner, Andy Robertson, first checked The Gunk 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 10 months ago.
Kids not old enough for this yet? There are lots of games similar to The Gunk. Here are some similar younger-rated games:
Play Style
Benefits
This game is good if you want to:
Age Ratings
Rated for younger players in Australia. Rated IGEA PG.
There are some explosive elements to the game to blow up blockages. You battle different aliens and throw them at each other to make them explode. Character use the words crap, damn and bollocks.
Skill Level
8+ year-olds usually have the required skill to enjoy this game. Still, it's important for parents and guardians to consider the maturity required to process the game content. Younger players need to be able to traverse the 3D world, be diligent at collecting master the vacuuming up of Gunk and enemies. There are also simple puzzles to solve that require a little lateral thinking and fetching and carrying.
Costs
The Gunk usually costs £19.99.
The Gunk
There are no additional in-game purchases, loot boxes, adverts or subscription costs.
Game Details
Release Date: 16/12/2021
Out Now: PC, Xbox One and Xbox X|S
Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds
Players: 1
Genres: Action, Traversal (Adventure, Collecting, Narrative, Platform and Puzzle)
Accessibility: 29 features
Components: 3D Third-Person
Developer: Steam World Games (@SteamWorldGames)
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