Happy Game

Horror is without a doubt one of the most interesting genres of media out there. And we are not talking just about the video game industry but everything, from books to movies, horror is always really varied and unique. It comes from being such a natural, human feeling. This time we’ll talk about Happy Game, a new game published and developed by Amanita Design.

This game will explore the horror of everything being alright, now that might sound a little off doesn't it? Well, let's talk a little bit more about the game and find out what it's all about.

About the game

“A little boy falls asleep to a horrible nightmare. Can you make him happy again?” That is the synthesis developers give us about the game, and it's already most interesting. Horror can be just about anything, in this case, it is all pretty and cute, and that can be incredibly disturbing.

This is an adventure game for the most part but has a lot of horror and unsettling situations, and you'll find yourself, oddly enough, enjoying them all. It is a point-and-click adventure game, and the player will have to solve different kinds of puzzles to go through the three worlds and complete the adventure. More often than not, creatures will try to come and kill you, and you'll have to think fast and act even faster if you want to make it out alive.

Disturbingly cute

For the most part, the horror of this game relies on it is pretty bizarre. You'll find cute fields full of flowers, but they'll also be covered in blood. You know, the usual decapitation of bunnies all over the place and stuff like that. The art is really cute, and it is all over the place, so much that it will be too sweet and cute, which makes all the violence all the more grotesque.

It is a bit similar to Naughty Bear in the sense that you wouldn't expect something so horrible to happen in such pretty scenery. Imagine if you were playing Viva Piñata and suddenly you had to violently kill all your cute little piñatas? Now that would be disturbing, wouldn't it?

Happy Game is an interesting little game, but it may just be too little, in the sense that it won't last you very long. It's really easy and quick to beat, and it doesn't present much of a challenge, not even with all the puzzles it has. Most of the credit goes for the art department of this game since it all depends on it being disturbingly cute, and they did a great job at that.

Pros:

• Well-developed
• Interesting puzzles
• Great art style
• Pretty Original

Cons:

• Short
• Easy to beat
• It gets boring fast