Reader Review: The Misadventures Of PB Winterbottom

Do you have what it takes to get a review published right here on Kotaku? Jenn does, as she eats all the pies.

Yes, that’s right, we’re now publishing reader reviews here on Kotaku. This is your chance to deliver sensible game purchasing advice to the rest of the Kotaku community.

And thanks to the very kind chaps at Madman Entertainment, purveyor of all kinds of cool, indie and esoteric film, the best reader review we publish each month will win a prize pack containing ten of the latest Madman DVD releases.

This review was submitted by Jenn Christodoulou. If you’ve played The Misadventures Of PB Winterbottom, or just want to ask Jenn more about it, leave your thoughts in the comments below.

The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom (XBLA, PC)

In this game you play as a dastardly thief called PB Winterbottom, whose heart and soul is set on the sweet and tantalising pastry sensation that is pies. You play through levels collecting those delicious baked goods by recording clones of yourself which play over in a continuous time loop, and using them to aid you in satiating your gluttony. Not exactly a new gameplay concept, but still one that is innovative and extremely fun.

Loved

The Look: The game looks and sounds amazing. Adopting a visual style reminiscent of steampunk and a fitting musical score, the game immediately surrounds you with this fantastic atmosphere as soon as you click ‘Play’. The game has aimed to be entertaining in every frame, including the loading screens. Each screen gives a line or two of the storyline (in a catchy rhyming limerick) as well as a humorous illustration to go with it, ensuring there’s always something to keep your eyes occupied.

Addictive: It’s incredibly addictive in a ‘I have to conquer this level before I go to bed even though it’s 4am and I have to be up in 3 hours’ sorta way. When you’re flying through the levels you feel so smart because your intellect is no match for the developers of the game. When a level requires you to think about how to win, you’re going to be so proud of yourself for figuring it out. (Did anybody else notice that genius at work just then?!) With each new world of levels giving the gameplay a fresh and exciting twist, The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom ensures you’ll never get bored!

Bonus Content: If you ever get stuck on the story levels, there’s a bunch of bonus content levels to be played. These are your typical ‘how quickly can you collect all these pies’ and ‘how many clones do you have to record in order for you to do it’ kinda thing, but very fun. It’s also quite fulfilling when your name is on the ‘Top Ten Leaderboards’, even if it’s only at number 7, and it took you 3 hours to get there.

Hated

The ‘Argghh’ Factor: It happens with all puzzle games, and Winterbottom is no exception. As soon as you reach a level that gets you stumped for over an hour, you will immediately hate this game. You’ll punch stuff, kick stuff and want to cram pies up Winterbottom’s big fat nose. But the satisfaction you’ll get when you figure out is totally worth it.

The game is a lot of fun, and incredibly easy to sink hours into. It will both challenge and entertain you, and for five measly bucks on Steam, what more can you ask for? Plus it’s about pies. Pay five bucks to play a game about collecting pies? Is that even a question?

Reviewed by: Jenn Christodoulou

You can have your Reader Review published on Kotaku. Send your review to us at the usual address. Make sure it’s written in the same format as above and in under 500 words – yes, we’ve upped the word limit. We’ll publish the best ones we get and the best of the month will win a Madman DVD prize pack.

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