I'm sure a lot of us have played Katamari Damacy at some point in our lives, right? You know, that one game where you roll around a sticky ball and watch things stick to it, and then it culminates into a giant, unstoppable force to be reckoned with and that can roll up entire continents?
Well Donut County is like that, but in reverse: you control a hole that starts out small, but grows larger as it swallows things up. It's a cute, little physics-based puzzle game with an endearing cast and witty storyline that's worth checking out.
Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your playthrough!
Start out small
Look, we understand — you're a hole that can swallow up everything and cause chaos, but everyone has to start somewhere. Even a hole.
When you deploy your hole on each stage, it'll be small, probably about the size of a manhole. You'll only be able to swallow up the small items first, such as blades of grass, small rocks, snakes, planks of wood, and whatever else is lying around on that particular stage.
After you eat up all of those small things, the hole gets a bit bigger and you can move on to the bigger, better objects. I mean, a hole's appetite is insatiable, so those large buildings and boulders must be tasty!
Observe everything in the environment
There's more to this game than just swallowing everything up, believe it or not.
As the characters go around and share their stories of how they ended up 999 feet below the surface of the Earth, you'll find yourself in a variety of different environments.
It's important to take a look around and see what happens if you move certain things around. For example, one stage involves fireworks and birds on a power line. You'll need to light up the fireworks somehow and shoot them at the birds to get them down to swallow them up and get big.
Another funny moment worth mentioning is when you swallow up some coal and then eat up some ears of corn — you'll end up with some tasty popcorn. Also notice what happens when you swallow up two rabbits.
The key thing to remember is to pay attention to your surroundings, see how things react, and use it to your advantage to solve the puzzles and swallow everything up.
Give it a good wiggle
Sometimes you'll feel stuck because you've swallowed up all of the small items, but there's one object left on the current stage and you can't swallow it up!
Don't fret. I've noticed that sometimes the game seems a bit glitchy and makes it appear as if you can't consume an object. For me, it was on the stage on the 405 where I need to get the tiny car with a mouse driving it. I had already gotten all of the small rocks but the car just wasn't budging when the hole was underneath.
I've discovered that sometimes you just need to wiggle the hole beneath something to get it going. This also applies when you've got a large object in there, but it's not falling down and seems a bit stuck. Jiggling the hole can reposition it so that gravity can just pull it down without issue.
Upgrade your hole
As you play, you'll gain experience and your rank increases. This unlocks some upgrades that you can equip your hole with, you know, to maximize the efficiency of your remote-controlled hole.
One of the first upgrades you'll get is the catapult. This lets you launch objects back up, and is a necessity for solving some puzzles. There are other ones too, which you may need for the final boss fight.
A fun snack of a game
Donut County is a lightweight and fun physics-based puzzle game that's full of charm and wit. The puzzles are not the most difficult out there, but it's enough to make you think. The only issue with the game is the fact that it's fairly short. Once you feel like it's just getting the momentum going, you'll find yourself at the end of it.
But really, who can resist playing as a hole and just swallowing up everything as you ponder life itself?
