Öoo does something very rare in video games. It made me feel incredibly brainy and like a genius as I solved levels through clever level and puzzle design. You see, Öoo provides just one game mechanic at the very start of the game, but over the course of its short but perfectly formed runtime, it feeds you loads of different ways to use that mechanic over and over again to progress. This is all through “aha” moments as you reach a dead end, play around with something, and suddenly the answer slaps you in the face. It is a glorious realisation that Öoo brings you every few puzzles.
The main concept of Öoo is that you play as a bomb caterpillar. Initially, you’ll have one bomb body segment, but that will quickly become two, and these bombs are going to be used to solve every puzzle in the game. Initially, you’ll use them as a way to jump. The first bomb is not as powerful as the second bomb, but that becomes part of the puzzle-solving fun. You might need to blast yourself with one bomb to get across a wider gap, or avoid some acid with the other. Whenever you place a bomb, you’ll end up on top of it, and that means you can use it as a stepping stone. That’s helpful until you realise you might need to blow up a wall or the ceiling, so you’ll be looking for ways to drop bombs from bridges above to catch below. Each of the main 9 areas of the game introduces at least one new way to use the mechanic, and then sometimes Öoo combines multiple things, with a timing event. It isn’t top-tier difficult, but it does require some skill, speed, and precision to get it right. I don’t want to share more as it’ll rob you of your personal “aha” moments.
Along the way, you’ll reach checkpoints to mark respawns of dead ends or unwinable situations you can find yourself in. These checkpoints are a puzzle in themselves, though, as many passages are blocked by frogs that will only let you pass if you feed them a firefly. Guess what else gobbles up fireflies? Yes, your trusty checkpoint. What sometimes looks like a straightforward crossing of a room ends up being a mini bomb gymnastics puzzle, but in doing that puzzle, Öoo often teaches you something new. Another “aha” moment then means when you hit the overworld map to warp to previous chapter checkpoints, you’ll likely be exploring that area with your new trick to break new ground.
I cannot stress how satisfying Öoo is to play. Every few puzzles teach something new, and it teaches through level design that doesn’t provide an obvious route forward visually. It’s not dropping hint arrows saying “look here, do this”. Instead, by providing subtle visual cues, the player can explore and discover the answer themselves. Developer Nama Takahashi doesn’t take the player for a fool, and Öoo is so much better because of that. I want to feel brainy, and whilst it’s Nama’s level design that is the real star, the player feels like a future Mensa star.
Alongside all of this, Öoo offers some optional bonus puzzles to discover, a few secrets to unpack, and a catchy retro chiptune score. The graphics work well for the game’s theme, with each area having its own colour palette. Controls are responsive and consistent. The runtime means you could clear Öoo in around two hours if you are clever and precise, but those are two of the finest puzzle platforming hours I’ve played in years.
Öoo is a 10/10 gaming experience. Do not sleep on our bomb caterpillar friend.
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