On a macro level, there’s plenty else to pull you in in The Gunk’s story as well.

It helps that both characters are voiced and written expertly. The dynamic between the two characters and the bond that grows deeper and deeper as the story progress makes this an incredibly human story that’s easy to immediately get invested in. In spite of these obstacles, they both remain upbeat and optimistic, with Rani’s sense of wonder and curiosity being constantly piqued by the rich enigmas and alien beauty of the planet, and Becks pulling her back with her pragmatism and cautious personality. Both of them are very relatable, very normal people who, even though they find themselves in an extraordinary situation, are dealing with very real, very ordinary problems. Rani and Becks are the heart and soul of this tale, and it’s a tale with a lot of heart and soul. The Gunk’s story succeeds in more ways than one. 'With The Gunk, Image and Form has delivered yet another stone-cold classic that sinks its teeth into you the moment it kicks off, bites deeper and deeper as it progresses, and then embeds itself into you by the time it comes to an end.' Hoping to find the source of the energy signal, which they’re assuming will lead them to a money-making discovery, Rani heads deeper into the planet with Becks’ support in an effort to uncover the planet’s mysteries. The two friends land on an alien planet after chancing upon an energy signal, and soon upon their arrival, they find it completely decayed and isolated, with much of its long-standing troubles seemingly being brought about by an unknown, corrupting, black gelatinous substance that they dub “the gunk”.

The Gunk tells the story of Rani and Becks, two scavengers exploring the outer reaches of known human space to gather resources and find something that can make them some money, which they desperately need. True to form, with The Gunk, Image and Form has delivered yet another stone-cold classic that sinks its teeth into you the moment it kicks off, bites deeper and deeper as it progresses, and then embeds itself into you by the time it comes to an end. Enter, The Gunk– a story-driven, fully 3D action-adventure game that attempts to carve out its own identity- and succeeds on pretty much every front. Indie studio Image and Form has been putting out one excellent SteamWorld game after another for nearly a decade at this point, but now, after having mastered the art of 2D game design and delivered some of the best Metroidvania games ever with both SteamWorld Dig games, the developer is eyeing bigger and better things.

The gunk review