Big Walk comes from the creators of Untitled Goose Game and is currently in the running for Best Multiplayer Game of the Year.
Co-op games, commonly referred to as “Friendslop,” have enjoyed a real boom in recent years. Games like Lethal Company,Peak,and Meccha Chameleon regularly achieve player counts, which most indie devs wouldn’t even dare to dream of.
Big Walk from House House is now following exactly this path.The small development team, which has already made a name for itself with the charmingUntitled Goose Game, is building directly on its previous success with this new game. The gaming press is showering it with praise, and players on Steam are absolutely blown away.
Talking, Running, Arms
Big Walk is aimed exclusively at co-op partners and groups—which probably shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to you. However, this multiplayer adventure completely reimagines the genre and deliberately does without everything you’d find in any guidebook on developing a potential co-op hit.
There isno specific goal, no map, and no rewards. All the fun here comes from the players themselves. To achieve this, Big Walk makes use of Proximity Chat—an in-game voice chat system based on the distance between players. Of course, this isn’t an innovative feature, as most Friendslop games now use a similar chat system.
In Big Walk, however, proximity chat plays a particularly important role. The developers demonstrate this themselves in the gameplay trailer:
Here’s what it’s about: You find yourselves as a group in an open world consisting largely of forests and mountainous terrain. Without a map, getting lost is inevitable, and if you get separated from the group, there’s no way to simply fast-travel back to your friends.
Instead, the game offers you various gadgets, such as flare guns, megaphones, and binoculars, to help you find your way back to the group. If you yell loud enough, you might even reach your destination. But it’s not just the walks through the wilderness that are meant to keep you entertained.
Puzzles and skill-based challenges are scattered throughout the world, and you can only tackle them if your communication is on point. When words fail you, use the flexibility of your arms to gesticulate wildly and perhaps arrive at a solution together. How exactly you reach your goal in the end is up to you.
“You won’t see this again anytime soon”
With its slow-paced approach, Big Walk seems to be striking a chord. On Steam, the walking simulator garnered more than 4,000 reviews within three daysmore than 4,000 reviews within three days, 89 percent of which were positive. The enthusiasm among the gaming press is even greater.
OnMetacritic , Big Walk has an average score of92 out of a possible 100 points, with several well-known media outletsawarding the highest score, includingInsider Gamingand Eurogamer. Josh Challies of Insider Gaming, who hails the game as a masterpiece, writes:
Meanwhile, the reviews on Steam paint a similarly euphoric picture.The only noteworthy criticism that comes up time and again is issues with the volume of the player voices.& nbsp;However, a patch that fixes this has already been rolled out.
One of the biggest surprises: Big Walk is said to offer an extremely positive gaming experience even with complete strangers. Here is a selection of Steam reviews:
- AxisKronos™:“I just can’t get enough of this game; the puzzles are fun to solve with friends, and the game is very relaxing. But—and I really have to say this—joining random lobbies using codes from the forums has elevated the experience for me far beyond that of just a cool co-op game. Every server I’ve been on so far has been a blast. Even if you’re playing the same puzzle for the fifth time, it never gets boring because you get to celebrate the victory with a new group of people who are experiencing the game for the first time.”
- Spiral:“An experience like this probably won’t happen again for quite some time. […] This game is something truly special. It’s a beautiful experience, designed with great attention to detail by people who know exactly how to use communication—and the special bond between friends—and bring it to the forefront at every moment.”
- Rozzy:“The game is absolutely top-notch. Running around, getting lost, trying to find the things you lost because you landed on your butt while sliding down. Constantly turning the flashlight on and off, getting lost again (this time in the dark), and figuring out how things work. The adventure is fantastic!”
With reviews like these, Big Walk has serious grounds for hope of being nominated at this year’s Game Awards. Just last yearPeak secured a spot among the nominees for Best Multiplayer Game of the Year, even though the award ultimately went to Arc Raiders.
As derogatory as “Friendslop” may sound, the genre can certainly hold its own against the big titles. With such phenomenal reviews, even from the gaming press, Big Walk could even be a contender for the most coveted title at the awards ceremony in L.A.: the “Game of the Year” award.
What do you think? Have you maybe played the game yourself or seen it on streamers? What’s your verdict? Feel free to let us know in the comments!
