#birdgut

"BirdGut is a hand-drawn 2d puzzle-platformer from the perspective of an outcast bee who gets eaten by a bird, and discovers that the bird's internal organs are not organs at all, but facilities in which the consumed insects are brainwashed and enslaved. Experience this bizarre one-man project for yourself." (from the Steam page!)

birdguts a fairly short game but it can still be pretty challenging! (pain and agony as i remember a section that had a lot of buzzsaws; seriously what is with challenging platformers and buzzsaws)

bug content: oops all bugs! - almost every character in the game is bug or bug-adjacent!

free or paid?: free!

genres: adventure, puzzle-platformer

content warnings: player character is a deformed bee that is rejected from their hive

[Birthday Stream!!!]

tonight at 6:30 PM CST, I Play Birdgut!!!

huh

BirdGut is a hand-drawn 2-D puzzle platformer created by one Micah Boursier, released on March 19th, 2019. I found this game through my steam recommendations. Seeing as it was a free game, I gave it a shot. What did I think of it? Well, read and see, viewer.

Story

The game’s story is quite simple. The bee hatches, but not properly, being born 1 larval stage behind. He is kicked from the hive to fend for himself, and is soon eaten by a bird. This isn’t a normal bird, though. It brainwashes the bugs it eats and forces them to operate its organs! However, because of our friend’s stunted development, he’s too stupid to be brainwashed. He then takes it upon himself to destroy the bird from the inside-out, freeing himself and the enslaved bugs.

Gameplay

BirdGut plays similarly to games like Limbo or Little Nightmares, but is far simpler than those two. Our bee friend is armed with a single jump, but can push other objects in the game world. The controls are simple, but they get the job done. Bee needs to solve environmental puzzles in order to proceed, which can include evading guards, operating machinery, or using turrets to hit targets, amongst others. Bee has to navigate through 9 levels of the bird’s digestive system to get to the “missile chamber” and blow it up.

The levels are structured in a linear fashion, and each contain an optional hidden skull for you to find. I found the levels to have a fair amount of challenge that followed a smooth difficulty curve. Except for one level. 

fuck the small intestine. The small intestine is the 6th stage of the game, and it’s structured unlike any other stage in the game. It’s a god forsaken platformer maze. One of the sawblade rooms killed me more than anything else in the game! AND THAT SAWBLADE SECTION IS JUST ONE SMALL PART OF THIS MAZE! AND SOME OF THE PATHWAYS AND ROOMS LOOK IDENTICAL!  It gets more focused towards the end, but still, the small intestines are without a doubt the worst level in the game.

Visuals and Music

As stated earlier, the whole game is hand-drawn by creator Micah Boursier. The simplistic monochromatic artstyle helps to put focus on the platforming, while also selling the setting fairly well. It keeps the oppressive, dystopian atmosphere a forefront, with all the security, the clearly brainwashed residents, and the heavy industrialism present from the intestines onward. 

The music was made by one Taylor Baum and one Miguel Arada. The soundtrack is very quiet and ambient, sometimes implementing a piano when needed. The soundtrack mixes soft, squishy sounds with mechanical hums to sell the premise of an industrial society inside of a creature.

Conclusion

BirdGut is a funny hand drawn puzzle platforming adventure where you help a deformed bee escape a brainwashed civilization Inside a bird's digestive tract!