Xbox’s strangest studio is in the works

For a while, it looked like Double Fine might struggle under the Microsoft umbrella. The Tim Schafer-led game studio is beloved for offbeat titles like The brutal myth and Broken agebut after Which was acquired by Microsoft in 2019his only new release for years was the long-awaited sequel to Psychonauts. Lately, though, Double Fine has been on a roll. The studio released it last year The wonderful stranger a guard, A game about a sentient beacon. This week, it took off ovena multiplayer brawler with cool lives and a lot of pottery. It’s another strange pleasure that can only come from Double Fine.

In its simplest form, oven It is a four-on-four competitive game. The goal of each team is to collect water across the map and use it to extinguish the fire in the opposing team’s furnace. Put out the enemy’s furnace first and you’ll win. It’s kind of a simplified deal league of legendswith a similar structure, but clearer and clearer goals. There is no level up, no minions, and no experience points in farming. Just a bunch of people running around and hitting each other, while trying to carry water across the level.

Above this simple core is a pottery theme that adds all sorts of interesting wrinkles. In a world oveneach player is a cute little floating soul who acts a bit like a hermit crab. In order to actually participate in the matches, the spirits must inhabit a vessel. The type of pottery you live in makes a big difference. They’re basically character classes; Large pots may be able to take a lot of damage while holding little water, while a fragile, bottle-shaped pot is the opposite, making them great for attacking.

Best of all, you get to sculpt these pots yourself using a virtual pottery wheel. It’s fun and tactile, as you use the joysticks to move a block of clay up and down and shape it. As you progress through the game, you’ll unlock different ways to customize it with small add-ons or colorful glazes. It’s really satisfying to have complete control over your character’s appearance. You can create a full set of pots, but in each match you are allowed to bring three of them that you can switch between when you respawn. This means that there is some strategy to getting a good combination of bets: not only does it look great, it also gives you different skill sets.

As for the matches themselves, while the goal is clear, the experience is pure chaos. Even the most durable pots can still be destroyed, so there’s a real (double) fine line between being aggressive and constantly getting smashed. The controls are very simple – you have one normal attack, one special attack, and you can roll and jump – and things move very quickly. You’ll come back to life after just a few seconds, so there’s barely a moment to catch your breath.

Adding to this feeling of chaos is the level design. The stages are all fairly small, so you’ll never be too far from an enemy, and each is designed differently so where you collect health and water changes. Each also has interactive elements that add some fun twists. One level has boats circling the battlefield, letting you try to sneak into the opposite furnace, while another features a conveyor belt offering everything from explosive boxes to hiding places. My favorite is the level with the disco floor, where anyone who steps on the tile at the wrong time will find themselves unable to do anything but dance for several important seconds.

While it is not a shooter, the game is oven It reminds me more spoon. They both take a scary genre – competitive online multiplayer gaming – and turn it into something fun and friendly. Both require a degree of teamwork, but you can easily do so without the need for voice chat. in ovenAll you have to do is pay attention to where your teammates are so that at least someone is focused on defending your oven and someone is spraying water on the opponents’ base. Games only last a few minutes, but I usually find myself constantly running back and forth on offense and defense, just like a weird game of basketball.

However, there is a lot of room for growth oven. There is currently one game mode that, despite being fun, may get old. Not everything has to be a full-service live gamebut more diversity would be welcome.

oven It’s a solid game that’s able to cram the highs and lows of multiplayer gameplay into a tight, concise package. But it’s that sense of elegance and goofiness that really elevates it. The game is so silly, it’s like you’re wandering into a Saturday morning cartoon and beating up your friends. This is another sign that no matter where Double Fine is, it will always be weird in the best way possible.

_{oven Available now on PS5, Xbox and PC.}