GooHoo Review

There's no dearth of cute puzzle platformer mashups on the App Store, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for more. GooHoo is one of the latest entries to the genre and it's pretty charming, although assume that the free version is a demo more than anything.

Players control GooHoo, a cute little yellow blob, as he attempts to explore a city by leaping into giant robots, UFOs, and robotic dogs. The controls are very simple: a swipe causes GooHoo to go in the relevant direction, with him needing to traverse various cogs and machinery within the giant robots. At first it's simple stuff, but even during the free stages it's clear that things will steadily get trickier.

Timing is of the essence early on with various cogs continuing to move and requiring a well-timed leap to the next one. Soon though, there are lasers out to kill GooHoo in one hit and trampolines that propel him elsewhere. Some lasers can be deflected with mirrors while others simply require one to move quickly past them. It's a challenging mix but the penance for failure is never too substantial, simply requiring one to start over with the level. Experimentation is handy here, although a map feature does ensure that one always knows where to go next.

Various collectibles as well as a special data cluster pave the way to encouraging one to replay missions in order to get everything possible. It might not be hugely original, but that doesn't stop this being a pleasantly enjoyable experience.

The only jarring thing about GooHoo is its menus. It's sometimes awkward to know where to move between the different creatures as the layout focuses on great visuals but not an entirely clear interface. It's easy to see what robots should be switched, but early on it's just as easy to forget the presence of others such as the dogs and UFOs.

As alluded to, the free version of GooHoo provides a decent taste of what's to come. With a small mixture of giant robots, dogs, and UFOs to explore, it's an enjoyable example of what's to come for those willing to pay up to buy the full game. Given the full game only costs $0.99, it's a pretty easy decision to make.