Playing it safe is common when it comes to AAA game development. Even with the best game franchises, finding out the developers have given you just more of the same will always be a little disappointing. As gamers, we are always looking for a fresh take on what we love. 

In 2023 there were 14,532 games released. Some you will have heard of but most will have plummeted into the Gaben’s basement, never to be seen again. So if you are one of the brave souls trying your hand at game development you need something that stands out. You can bet the first time I saw this game, the title alone made an impression. 

Nut Cracker

Squirrel with a Gun comes to us from the developer's Dee Dee Creations. As the title suggests, you indeed play as a plucky rodent with a penchant for firearms. The game opens with our fury hero dropping into some sort of laboratory, conveniently kitted out with a training course for a clever Squirrel such as yourself. Here we learn to activate pressure pads, jump around and how to throw objects we've picked up. On collecting the basketball-sized nut a Matrix-like agent opens the door and stumbles in, dropping his handgun in the process. In a hilarious nonverbal sequence you can see the squirrel sizing up the gun and thinking he would like a bit of that. You then pick up the gun and do what must be done. 

As soon as you fire a round the squirrel is immediately knocked backwards from the kick, which makes sense. While this might sound annoying to me it plays into the central premise for the game. Once an enemy is downed you can run over to perform a finishing move which is different for each weapon type. There is even a finishing move for when you have no weapon, which makes me laugh every time. Another cool aspect of the guns is that you can use them to traverse large gaps by firing downward, which is even more effective with the UZI.

I was surprised to see there was no blood and gore when shooting your human foes. Maybe this was seen as an unnecessary drain on resources so things are kept simple. I was also surprised there were no other animals gadding around the place, guard dogs or grumpy house cats for example. If we are ever treated to a sequel these are the extra layers I will be hoping for. 

Big Nut Energy

So the core drive for the game is gathering large nuts either through exploration or solving puzzles. There are also small nuts to gather which usually appear in lines that can guide you to find hidden secrets: think coins in a Mario game or Sonic game. Once you leave the tutorial you arrive in the burbs, surrounded by various buildings and facilities. As you scurry about you will come across boxes that give you access to certain weapons, as long as you have enough large and small nuts to open the box. Scattered around these levels there are also civilians going about their business and agents ready to shoot you on sight. If you are lacking a weapon you can always quietly scamper up their back and snap their neck. Look, these are game physics ok!

To progress you need to grab the large nuts in each location which will eventually allow you to progress to the end of the area boss fight. Unlocking an RC car is key to the first confrontation and then allows you to call the car any time you're on the street. These boss fights are very fun and offer a change of pace from the main gameplay loop. The puzzles on offer are not exactly taxing but their creative design made me chuckle plenty of times. These have ranged from playing quarterback to finding a lost groom to poll dancing. I even fixed someone's back problem by snapping their neck into place. In one garden I saw a cookout taking place with some very raw burgers on the grill: one shot to the propane tank below and I was gathering charred meat from all around the neighbourhood. 

Is it PC?

This game ran like a dream from the second I booted it up, with no crashes or issues. You move around with the usual WASD and mouse to change the view, which is fast and smooth. Controller is an option if you are that way inclined and works perfectly well. The environments are a weird mix of impressive to quite bland, in terms of textures and assets at least. The opening room looks great with reflections on the metallic floor and nice lighting. 

However, the first outdoor area looks quite sparse and some areas are so basic you could be forgiven for thinking they were player-made content. However, while the game is bare bones in the graphics and animation department, that doesn't stop the gameplay and level design from working very well. Anyone who plays a lot of indie games knows you need to remember how small some of these teams are, so you can't expect the level of polish as the likes of Naughty Dog.

Conclusion

I'm not sure where the concept for a squirrel with a gun came from but it's the kind of idea you can see coming from a drunken night out. In truth, a squirrel wouldn't even be able to pick a handgun up, let alone larger weapons such as grenade launchers. However this is not about a true-to-life simulation of a squirrel's life in suburbia, it's about having fun and working through bizarre puzzles.

On reflection, I have been comparing it to games like Untitled Goose Game and Goat Simulator quite a lot. From this angle, I do wish there were more opportunities to mess with either guards or civilians alike. As it stands the guard AI is basic (but functional) and the only behaviour we see of civilians is either adoration (taking selfies etc) or running in fear. In this sense, this game doesn't quite measure up to its peers. However, considering the small price tag there is more than enough to recommend this title to anyone who wants some light-hearted fun. I really hope we see a sequel in the future that adds a more substantial gameplay loop and more robust AI.