Stick It to the Man! review
Very seldom does a video game take me back to my carefree childhood days. From the moment I started until the moment the credits rolled, Stick It to the Man! (SITTM! hereafter) reminded me of the many days I spent sitting on the couch and laughing at Rocko’s Modern Life before and after school.
SITTM! revolves around a hardhat tester named Ray who has been hit on the head in a freak accident at work. He now, for some unknown reason, has a pinkish-purple “spaghetti arm” growing out of his head. He can use it to grab onto things, or - even cooler – to read people’s minds. Besides grabbing stuff and reading minds, Ray can use stickers he finds to solve puzzles.
The game is filled with tons of humor, and it works. Good humor is hard to come by in games, but SITTM! nailed it. From jokes about Silver Surfer for the NES to hilariously inappropriate innuendos, this game is sure to have you laughing.
I like this game because it doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s a nice change of pace from the more serious games I’ve been playing recently, like Watch_Dogs (review coming soon!) and Max Payne 3. The puzzles weren’t overly challenging (although I will admit to getting stuck a few times towards the end), but they were very fun to figure out.
SITTM! on PS4 utilizes the DualShock 4’s speaker and touchpad very well. When Ray reads minds, the characters’ thoughts are projected through the DS4’s speaker. The player can (but doesn’t have to) use the touchpad to assist with platforming, which is a nice touch.
The only negative thing I can say about the game is the fact that it started to feel repetitive by Chapter 7 or 8 (out of 10 total chapters), but the monotony is short-lived and doesn’t take the fun out of the experience.
Final thoughts
Appearance: The cardboard and paper visuals are stunning. The art style is very distinctive and is just another thing that makes the game memorable.
Gameplay: Gameplay consists of typical platforming as well as reading minds and placing stickers. There’s lots of jumping, as one would expect from any platformer. Ray pokes fun at this near the beginning of the game.
Sound: The music in this game is outstanding. The soundtrack, appropriately titled “Spaghetti Arm Swing,” can be purchased through Bandcamp.
Bottom line: SITTM! is a brilliantly different indie puzzle-platforming experience. PlayStation Plus users should download it immediately, as it is free with a Plus subscription.
Overall score: 8.0, Great
About the game
Developer: Zoink Games
Publisher: Ripstone Games
Genre: Puzzle Platformer
Release date: Nov. 19, 2013 (PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, PC), May 1, 2014 (Wii U), May 6, 2014 (PlayStation 4)
Available on: PC, PS3, PS4, PSVita, Wii U
Reviewed on: PlayStation 4
