Gunpoint

Together, during a 3-4 hour campaign, you'll hack computers, rewire security systems, have gun fights, and solve a case that's drenched in noir homage. Although the campaign only lasts a short while, what {Gunpoint} lacks in quantity it more than makes up for in quality. The term "short but sweet" fits very appropriately here.

It all kicks off in Conway's apartment, with our protagonist immediately flung through his window, crashing into the adjacent building. The phone rings. His first client is on the other end of the line. He picks himself up from the floor and makes his way over to the lift, ready to talk business with the woman who called. She lives just over the road, it's not a long walk.

However, before he reaches the top floor of her building another man enters the room, shoots the client, and makes good his escape. It seems Conway is in the wrong place at the wrong time, and you don't have to have read any Raymond Chandler novels to know that he's going to be the number one suspect in the ensuing case.

Luckily for everyone concerned, he has allies. The client's boss calls, knowing he is innocent, and offers to direct him to a series of offices so he can wipe all traces of his presence from the scene of the crime. These are the first missions in a campaign that has the spy-for-hire working for a variety of different characters, each with contrasting motivations, as he aims to get to the bottom of the mystery, and ultimately find out who killed the girl and why.

Gunpoint's simplistic visual design belies its intricate nature. You stealth through the cross-sections of buildings, hack computers, take out guards, and use a tool called the crosswire to manipulate security devices for your own ends. Your introduction to the game's central mechanic is gentle enough, but the complexity of the levels soon increases. A nudge on the mouse wheel brings you into a different view, and from this perspective you can see the various systems in the building, and how they all connect.

Different objects can be linked together as you see fit. Security cameras that would normally trigger an alarm can be fiddled so they instead open doors, movement sensors can be rewired so they turn out the lights, and light switches can be linked up to release trapdoors. All of these things are interchangeable, the only limit being what colour the circuitry in question is. As you progress through the campaign more and more systems come into play, and you'll have to queue up actions in order to reach your objective.

Guards with varying abilities patrol the corridors. Your basic patrolman isn't too bright, and when caught unawares they can be pummeled into submission. As you delve further into the story there's more challenging opponents, with characters who can't be knocked out, and others who can see in the dark. They're all expert marksmen and will kill you on sight, usually with the first shot (you can unlock a perk that means they'll occasionally miss, otherwise their aim is straight and true).

Your Bullfrog trousers mean you can jump like a superhero, and survive any fall. You can also cling to walls and ceilings: Conway is an agile man. Using his agility allows us to leap great distances, pounce on unsuspecting guards, and burst through plate glass windows. During each mission you'll be required to use all of these skills, as well as his ability to rewire electronic circuits, in order to infiltrate secure buildings and extract your objective, usually loot of the digital kind. While challenging and thought provoking, none of the puzzles are insurmountable, and with a bit of methodical thinking you can usually find the solution fairly quickly. {Gunpoint} gives you the tools, and leaves you to it. You're allowed time to figure out what you need to do, and reaching your goal is always satisfying, precisely because your hand isn't being held during the process.

Between missions you liaise with clients via a handheld PDA, and the exchanges between the characters are well written and amusing. You're even given some latitude when it comes to shaping the conversation, though this is largely cosmetic, and the dialogue options you choose don't seem to impact the the missions you're assigned. It's very atmospheric, and the tone of the conversations evokes the noir classics that have clearly influenced the plot and visual style.

Gunpoint's simplistic aesthetic is pleasing to the eye, and manages to communicate all of the relevant information needed when planning out your next move. Conway's animations are well implemented, in particular his abnormally huge jump. Streetlights glow in gloomy streets, internal environments are nuanced and crammed full of delightful detail. It's all been well put together and thoughtfully laid out.

Accompanying the adventure is an enchanting jazz soundtrack, which heightens the noir setting. When using the crosswire the tempo of the music shifts slightly; it's another well implemented idea, and apart from the occasional moment where the soundtracks don't quite marry up, the bluesy floating notes of the saxophone adds to the mood and atmosphere.

We've mentioned the short running time of the campaign, but given Gunpoint's budget pricing, this isn't really a huge issue. There's a level editor that allows for user-generated content. Tiny file sizes will make them easy to share, and Steam Workshop integration will hopefully follow in the future. It's easy to put together basic structures and it felt intuitive to use, and testing levels as you build them is quick and simple.

Beyond the standard release (£6.99) there's two more ways to purchase the game. The Special Edition (£14.99) includes developer commentaries (via little sprites found in the various missions) and the game's soundtrack. The Exclusive Edition (£22.99) has all of the above, plus a making-of documentary, more music, access to "The Secret Beta Access List" (early versions of any subsequent games made by the studio), and a series of prototype builds of the game that include missions that didn't make the final cut. It's on Steam now, and for the week following launch there's a 10% discount on the above prices.

Whatever version of {Gunpoint} you buy, you're in for a treat. Sure it's a fleeting experience, but it's a superbly crafted title with some great ideas. There's different ways to approach each mission (I went with the non-lethal approach first time around, next time I'm going on a killing spree), so you'll likely want to revisit the game once the case has been closed and experiment in different directions. There's ingenuity in the game's mechanics and design, everything's well presented and it fits together perfectly. It's not the most difficult title out there, and perhaps there could've been more challenge in some of the later missions, but it's a minor gripe and not one that should dissuade you from finding room for it on your hard drive.