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• gamedeal user

  Feb 15, 2015

  A stealth release outta nowhere by a small team working within Ubisoft to create good games [spoiler](maybe a rebel group making non-buggy games without tons of DLC and giant day one patches?)[/spoiler], [I]Grow Home[/I] slipped under many people's radar, perhaps overshadowed by bigger games released around the same time. That's unfortunate, because Grow Home is a fantastic 3D platformer (a mostly-dead genre treading water with few and far between indie releases) that does basically everything right. I'd hesitate to call it a masterpiece, but the core mechanics, (simple) story, and charming aesthetic (not to mention the absurdly low price) easily bump it into the everyone-should-give-this-a-try tier. Let's break it down. [B]Gameplay[/B] A smaller game like this, with no budget to craft twenty hours of cutscenes and grandiose sweeping plots full of twists and turns, lives and dies on gameplay alone. Fortunately, in this area, Grow Home [I]excels[/I]. The game starts you off simply: left trigger to grab with your left hand, right trigger to grab with your right. After a few shaky climbs up cliffs, you start to get the hang of it, and soon you're flinging yourself from cliff to cliff like a robotic monkey, champion of your domain. This progresses slightly over the course of the game, with temporary slow hovering powerups giving way to crazy hang-glider-esque leaves that let you soar straight down at dizzying speeds then up into a triumphant crescendo, finally culminating in a rocket pack that lets you control your ascent and descent, but with small amounts of (thankfully automatically recharging) fuel. The climbing is fantastic, putting the likes of Nathan Drake and Lara Croft to shame, instead aiming for and reaching the lofty heights of Shadow of the Colossus's excellent system. Unlike SOTC, though, this game isn't too much of a challenge, and with no stamina meter to speak of you're rarely in *too* much danger. The central progression mechanic involves growing stalks off of a large plant, riding them like missiles into glowing green energy rock in order to make the central plant grow larger. It doesn't sound fun, and indeed I had more fun with the collect-a-thon style crystal hunt, but it's serviceable and it's always frustrating (in a good way) when you have to grow more stalks off of a stalk that *just* didn't reach its target. [B]Graphics[/B] Grow Home's artstyle is fantastic, a flat-textured, low-poly aesthetic full of whimsy and charm, with silly-looking creatures and exotic-looking plants everywhere you look. These flora and fauna are occasionally functional, but a lot of the scenery is just that. The lighting looks beautiful, and standing on an asteroid seventeen hundred meters in the air, staring up into the sky and then looking down at the ocean and all the vines below you is a breathtaking experience. [B]Sound[/B] With little in the way of music to speak of, Grow Home's weakest area is this by far. The creature noises, ambient sounds, and occasional hint of music are fine, but nothing I would call outstanding by any means. [B]Other thoughts[/B] With little in the way of replayability and a very short time to finish the game (though add a few hours on for getting every collectible, including (light ending spoiler) [spoiler] the eight star seeds after the credits roll [/spoiler], Grow Home might not be for everyone. If you want a fun, upbeat experience with no combat to worry about and little story to wrap your head around, give it a shot. It's a delightful little game in a rare genre, and it's absolutely worth your time - provided you don't mind that time being a little short. The price point is fair for the amount of game you get, I think, and I'd easily recommend it at full price -- but waiting for a sale might be smart if you're the type who prefers to get dozens of hours of gameplay for their money. Bonus: If you hate uPlay and think that Ubisoft game = have to deal with secondary launcher, fret not. Grow Home doesn't use uPlay and operates like any other game on Steam. [B]Closing remarks[/B] Grow Home is excellent, and I hope this team delivers even more exciting experiences, with or without Ubisoft. The central mechanic is so good I'd play similar games in other scenarios (EVA spaceship repair sim? Please? Co-op? Someone hire me to design that). Highly recommended.
• gamedeal user

  Feb 5, 2015

  - No Uplay! - Runs very well, no issues at all other than lack of AA options - but you can enable that via Nvidia/AMD control pannels - This game is a really relaxing exlploration game. - Only several hours in, so not sure where the game will take me, but it is a lot of fun so far, well worth the price to explore my own alien paradise, grow plants and sky dive / jump / fly to crazy places. - Lots of islands, caves, plantlife and wildlife - Massive vertical expanse to explore rather than simple ground level - Use these resources to explore and grow the large "Star Plant", guiding it's branches to new areas high above, using the alien paradise enviroment to help you along the way. Grow it into any shape you want! - Climbing/grabbing mechanic is great. Uses triggers to control each arm. Demands that you pay attention to where your hands are, how you move, and what you hold on to. - Collectable items and leveling up of BuD can give new abilites that give you much greater freedom to get around.
• gamedeal user

  Feb 9, 2015

  I wasn't expecting to enjoy this due to my usual tastes, but this won me over quite quickly. Definitely worth the price of admission if you're into some exploratory platforming with a little magical twist. At $8.00 it's not too much of a gamble. If you simply want to relax and jump around, rock-climb to impossible heights, hang-glide or ride on plants while they rapidly grow then this is for you! No U-Play required! A+ Kind of a funny side note; Ubisoft seems to really like having their characters climb up to the tops of things don't they? Nothing wrong with that, just kind of an amusing observation (Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, Grow Home, Prince of Persia).
• gamedeal user

  Aug 23, 2015

  10/10 [b]Beep boop.[/b] [h1]Overview[/h1] [i]Grow Home[/i] is a third-person adventure game featuring an aphonic humanoid robot named B.U.D [i](Botanical Utility Droid)[/i]. B.U.D starts his journey empty-handed, low on juice and faced with a burdensome task: grow a single plant all the way up into the stratosphere to collect the seeds it produces in order to save his home planet. Delightedly, playing [i]Grow Home[/i] is not a burdernsome task in the slightest and I found myself quickly tearing through the game until nothing was left to achieve. [i]Grow Home[/i] brings everything that matters. [h1]Story[/h1] Story? Oh yeah. You gotta climb a plant and something something... Jetpacks and Leafgliders something something save your planet... [h1]Gameplay[/h1] This is where [i]Grow Home[/i] scores all of its points. Like, literally all 10 of them. From the instant that B.U.D is in your control, you feel it. The awkward, lumbering, procedurally-animated mess of fun that is B.U.D's mobility instantly sinks into you and you can't help but smile just a little bit as he trips and stumbles around. Then, after rolling down a cliffside and short-circuiting in the mountain's surrounding waters, you smile a lot. You start with limited abilities: jumping, climbing and... tumbling [i](not convinced that this is actually an ability)[/i]. After a few unavoidably chuckle-worthy mistakes, the game develops into something intuitive and simple. Using the controller's shoulder buttons as left and right claws, B.U.D can climb any surface and start to crawl his way up the Star Plant. The feeling of freedom delivered by B.U.D's mobility is simply excellent, allowing you to gradually move more fluidly and quickly as you upgrade the clumsy robot's abilities. Throughout your vertical expedition, you'll encounter a fun mix of strange creatures, mysterious caves, vibrant vegetation and shiny minerals on unique floating islands. A quickly-revolving day-and-night cycle further accents and dynamically changes the colorful areas as you scrutinize them for gems; glowing crystals that are used to upgrade B.U.D's capabilities, including a jetpack amongst a couple of other useful tweaks. Your ultimate goal is to grow plants [i](you literally drive plant stems forward as they grow miraculously fast from under you)[/i] into the surrounding islands in order to feed the lands' mineral energy to the central Star Plant, grow it to fruition and harvest its star seeds. [h1]Audio[/h1] With a simple ambient soundtrack, the expected sound effects and the occasional [i]beep boop[/i] sound expresed by B.U.D, the audio compliments the game at all times. I really don't have anything negative to say about the audio. That said, nothing really stood out either, it just worked its charm obscurely while I enjoyed a fine slice of good video game. [h1]Technical[/h1] [i]Grow Home[/i] offers every basic customization option you've come to expect from a game. The game runs smoothly at all times and, for the 6-hour long 100% complete expedition I ate through, I encountered no outstanding bugs or technical issues with the game. It just works so well. [h1]The TL;DR[/h1] The ride is short, but the drive is pretty wild. I haven't played a game that just [i]felt[/i] this good in the longest of times. I thought about taking a notch out from the score for the rather small amount of content to dig into, but taking the game's very fair price into consideration, I couldn't do it. [b]Play Grow Home now. Oh, and use a controller. It's awesome.[/b]
• gamedeal user

  Feb 15, 2015

  Game by Ubisoft that doesnt require Uplay. 10/10
• gamedeal user

  Feb 5, 2015

  My review of Grow Home~ *please be mindful of spelling mistakes, they seem to pop up no matter how focused I am when I type* OVERVIEW Grow home is a game where the goal is exactly what the title states- to grow home. How do you do this you ask? Well, you have two claw-like hands that can cling to anything and a giant vine, that can sprout little vines that you can control. You try to plug these into little glow-islands that float, and then it makes the big vine grow. Even though that may sound repetitive and/boring, it is not- under any extent. Keep reading to find out why. c: GAMEPLAY 8/10 You play as B.U.D, and as stated before, use claws and vines to go home and reach greater heights. Climbing functions in the same way that I Am Bread works, with a two hands seperatly controlled and seperately made to grip. One thing that really shines about this game is the physics, as bud's movements aren't scripted and are procedural. Step in some water and you'll start slipping, or hit the ground hard and you'll come stumbling to a halt. You use a multitude of plant-based gadgets to aid you in your climb, and these range from flower parachutes to leaf hang-gliders. Another prospect of the game is finding Crystals, spread out across the vertical landscape. As you find these, you'll unlock more abilities from a character zoom function to a super-powered jetpack. One of the best parts of the game is to get really elevated and jump off, falling until you deploy a parachute a mile down. The games height is 1.2 miles, (2000 feet) and is open for you to sprawl giant vines across every inch of it, All of the games functionalitys fit together so perfectly that this feels like a game that was meant to be from the start. GRAPHICS & SOUND 9/10 I can't even get started on the graphics. Bright, vivid colors and amazing landscapes will make you gape in wonder as you stare at the pristine heights waiting to be climbed. This game really proves to you that you don't need insanely textured ANYTHING to still have beautiful and charming graphics. You'll be amazed when the sun rises and adds more stunning colors, and when the sun sets and bud's headlights flick on, illuminating the certain part of the vine you've been climbing all day. Sound is just as perfect, fitting the current peaceful situation with harmonic tunes, also encouraging you to stop and marvel at your sorroundings. PHYSICS 9/10 Physics are great, and everything reacts as it should with weight and velocity. (No cardboard physcis here, don't worry.) Everything reacts as it should, such as pulling smaller rocks is quicker then larger ones, and falling faster or slower will determine just how far your pieces explode when you hit the ground or vine. VERDICT Grow Home is an absolutely stunning and charming game, that brings everything together in a glorious fashion. Pick this title up as soon as you get the chance, and enjoy. FINAL SCORE- 9/10 ~Potato Walrus EDIT: Updated for current gameplay.
• gamedeal user

  Feb 5, 2015

  So far, a great adventure game with an interesting core mechanic. The world is truly impressive in matters of scale, style and atmosphere. You control B.U.D., a tiny (and quite clumsy) robot whose job is to grow a huge plant. Growing the plant isn't nearly as boring as I thought it would be, it can be quite a challenge, actually. You also collect crystals along the way. These crystals unlock abilities for B.U.D. when collecting enough, a jetpack being one of the earlier abilities. Overall, the game feels great. You control each arm independently, but their only purpose is to grab onto things, which makes the game much easier to play than, say, Octodad. Jumping and walking are slightly too awkward in my opinion. Jumping isn't precise and might have you fall to your doom. Walking in Gow Home is a clumsy task, as B.U.D. steps on his feet and slides around a little bit, which can also make you fall off an edge. There aren't ennemies yet, but I hope I find some, which would up the variety just a bit. The polygon-based art style is a marvel to look at, surprisingly, which seem to work also thanks to a nice soundtrack. Awesome game overall. A step in the right direction for next-gen 3D patformers. If more developpers could follow Grow Home's ingenious level design, it could mark the beginning of an era of original and cool video games ideas.
• gamedeal user

  Sep 21, 2015

  A fun free-form 3D platformer where you grown your own level basically. That is not to say there isn't an inherent structure to the game (it still has static islands/platforms to grow to). I believe they found a good balance between the two, as i'm not someone who can play an entirely free-form game (i.e. minecraft and it's derivatives) for long. The main "beat the game" goal is fairly simple and can be achieved in a matter of hours, but getting 100% collectibles/achievements proves a bit harder but was fullfilling and did not get grindy or repetitive. Overall I highly reccomend this game if you like 3D platforms and especially if you like them with level-altering/building mechanics (something I rarely see except for games like Tiny & Big).
• gamedeal user

  Feb 9, 2015

  This game reminds me of early childhood memories, playing Super Mario 64 or NiGHTS Into Dreams for the first time, and marveling at the world contained within the boundaries of the screen. The game has no Uplay integration, which is a definite plus, and aside from achievements (which you can turn notifications off for), the game offers little in the way of outside distractions. No DLC. No over-designed in-game economies or resources to manage, with microtransactions ontop of that. None of that. This is a game that once you turn it on, and load up your save, you're in until you quit. The game is a canvas for player expression. Grow Star Plants to spell stuff in the sky. Dive 2000m in a freefall, then deploy your Glide Leaf to soar through a rock arch, before landing on a beach. Climb back up 2000m if you feel like it. (The climbing controls are great, by the way. Being able to shift your weight to get better hand holds, hang upside down, and generally climb anywhere you want feels fantastic and liberating.) Aside from some goofy animation hiccups -- like BUD tumbling, rolling momentarily as a literal cluster of appendages before recovering to his regular running animation -- the game is a sight to behold. I'd actually chalk up some of the animation mishaps as part of BUD's charm, part of his character. The sound is also a treat. The ambient tones, punctuated with fantastic sounds like old 56k router dialtones and whale songs, make for a very unique soundscape. Very relaxing. Once you've accomplished a lot of the game's main goals, it's also interesting to turn the game's music down and substitute in your own music. (It feels great to skydive to prog rock, for example.) If you're someone who enjoys Freeride modes in games like SKATE or SSX, you'll love getting into a zen state and jumping, climbing, falling, and gliding around in Grow Home with no particular goal in mind -- all while enjoying your own custom sountrack. It's medidative, if I had to use one word. There's a lot of main objectives to the core gameplay I've not mentioned, but that's not because I felt it's not worth mentioning. Sure, that content is great, and makes up the structured play in Grow Home, but I ultimately found that I had more fun making my own fun, expressing myself in the myriad ways possible in Grow Home. Hopefully you'll have as much fun discovering them as I did. Enjoy. Disclosure: I work at a Ubisoft studio, but not Reflections. I had no part in developing this game. This is an honest review from someone who enjoys this game a tonne.
• gamedeal user

  Mar 16, 2015

  I love this game but the one thing I think it should have is multiplayer. Who agrees with me?