Your files are gone and the deadline is tomorrow. What lengths will you go to so that you can finish your game in time? It’s time to be the Dev Guy.
I first grabbed Dev Guy back when it came out, however, I kept having other stuff to do and wasn’t able to actually jump into it until just recently. I also found it wouldn’t really run well on my laptop, so I had to go drag myself to install it on my desktop and then find the time to play. Well, I finally did just that.
Dev Guy follows a developer trying to get his game published. However, after leaving the USB drive that the game was on in his car, he has to go get it. Unfortunately, his car was towed. He apparently knows the tow company well, has his car brought back, and then finds out his car is locked. While you’re going to get your keys, the tow guy breaks the window to your car so that you can get in… but apparently he had taken out the USB stick when he first towed it and locked it. If you’re still following all this nonsense of a story, the tow guy apparently reformatted the stick, meaning your game is gone. So what do you do now? Why of course you go steal your developer neighbour’s games!
Dev Guy is basically a series of mini-games. Of course, you can choose to skip said mini-games, but then you don’t get the achievements! They typically aren’t that hard anyways. The game delves into certain fandoms, namely My Little Pony and cute AI anime girls. They aren’t so over the top in your face that you want to just quit immediately, but they are definitely there. One of the mini-games, two if you include the one for the credits, do have you controlling ponies though.
With a completely nonsensical story, there has to at least be a saving grace here. The sound and sound effects definitely aren’t that saving grace. As you move your main character around, you both notice that his feet look exceptionally odd and that he walks very squeakily. It didn’t take long for me to want to mute the sound because of this fact. Oh, and because why not, on the floor you live on, due to some barriers you have to walk through your neighbour’s interconnected apartments. Just what I wanted, more walking!
Graphically, Dev Guy has an interesting style that I suppose does fit what they are going for. His shoes really bug me with how they look though, since they look like they are on backwards or something. Each mini-game has its own style to show off each different developer’s look they are going for.
So while Dev Guy was interesting for a playthrough, I don’t really see myself going back. Which really is unfortunate, as I gave in at the end and didn’t really want to do that last mini-game, meaning I missed that achievement. Oh yeah, did I mention the game has no saves? It has no saves. Sure, it’s around a 30-minute game, but I really don’t want to go through all that stuff again – mainly just the walking sound effect – just to get that last achievement. Some of the mini-games seem a bit pointless too, like the “adventure” game that just has you walk down a corridor to find the solution.
The game is good if you’re looking for something to play through in a single session, but I wouldn’t recommend it beyond that. Partly because you DO have to do it in a single session, and partly because of that walking sound and those shoes. If you also have any issues with ponies and anime girls you’ll want to head elsewhere. And besides, the story seems a bit nonsensical too. I’m even overlooking some of the spelling issues in it too, as I figure it’s just part of a developer trying to type things fast to get done sooner. With that said, emotes in game explanations are a bit irritating…
Dev Guy Review
2/5
Lacks any sort of replayability, no saving, and those shoes with that sound effect. Yes, it really did bug me that much.
