I had originally planned to make a second review (cause I already made one on itch.io) but I - after beating the game again - left my thoughts in the oven for too long and now they're overcooked, so the review you're going to read is merely slightly-edited from my itch one. Anyway, tldr: game is good, you'll enjoy it! Especially if you like climbing games like White Knuckle, PEAK, and Getting Over It.
The suited creature in the elevator with a big smile begins to tell you its game idea:
"So it's like White Knuckle, but you go down-" is a pretty bland elevator pitch. Your mind thinks, [i]So... the monstrous flood below you is above you?[/i] but before you say it, the pitcher adds, "and you're being chased by a giant centipede."
"Couldn't you just drop to the bottom?" you ask.
"There's fall damage." You almost put a palm on your face, but it adds again, "You need to use a grappling hook to get down."
Short story aside, though this is a short game I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm so thoroughly enjoying it that I'm still stuck on the bonus map (at the time of writing), which I didn't even know existed until it popped up as a victim of speedrunning. As soon as I watched the first few seconds, I knew I had to come back.
So I did. The initial few moments of horror as I looked behind and saw how close the giant frickin centipede was to me have since been replaced by a consistently terrifying series of events after I jump from the red sky into a giant hole and latch onto a platform with my hook in a way that would certainly dislocate if not completely amputate my arm(s). As I delve deeper I move past the same obstacles as I'd done so before, but then I'm surprised as I fall right into the maw of the beast. But it doesn't kill you quick, leaving either enough time to freak out and die or enough time to freak out and miraculously survive.
The joy isn't in just surviving a particularly well-made horror monster though, half of the joy is mastering the movement of the hook. You'll start off thinking the thing is clunky, but then gradually get to use it like you were born with it. It's an amazing feeling, catching yourself, inches from death, being held upside down by your nigh-unbreakable hook and feeling the coldness of the stone floor just in front of your nose.
It's amazing how fun it is, and it goes to show that simple concepts don't have to be just tests. It's about execution. A highly-funded RPG game with a humongous world can feel terrible to play, just as a Tetris parody can feel great.
If you're like me and love three types of games in particular: games that slowly immerse you and games that let you 'pick up and play', then you'll enjoy this.
You'll also enjoy it especially if you like a third type of game: "not-quite roguelike-roguelites". Games where you get punched in the gut over and over until you learn to dodge it, then get punched again from a different angle, and learn to dodge that, too.
There is hope when there is despair.
