Gish (video game)
| Gish | |
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| Developer(s) | Cryptic Sea |
| Publisher(s) | Chronic Logic |
| Designer(s) |
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| Programmer(s) |
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| Artist(s) | Edmund McMillen |
| Writer(s) | Dave Strock |
| Composer(s) | Game Audio Magic |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux |
| Release | Windows, OS X Linux |
| Genre(s) | side-scroller, platformer |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Gish is a side-scrolling platformer video game developed by US-based indie developer Cryptic Sea (pseudonym of Alex Austin) and published by Chronic Logic. A sequel was announced, but subsequently canceled in late 2009 after McMillen left the project.
The game was featured in the first The Humble Indie Bundle in May 2010. Following the success of the promotion, Cryptic Sea pledged to go open source with the game which eventually happened on May 29, 2010.
Gish is a ball of tar who lives happily with his human girlfriend Brea, until one day a mysterious dark creature kidnaps her. Gish fights through several levels of enemies in the sewers of Dross until the final boss appears: Hera, Gish's former classmate who has an unrequited affection towards Gish. Gish rejects her, and Hera threatens to drop Brea into a pool of lava. After Gish defeats Hera, he must rescue Brea. If the player succeeds, Brea and Gish escape and become famous entomologists, as well as the world's first legal inter-species marriage. If the player fails, Brea burns to death in the lava pit and Gish goes on to live a life of celibacy, "volunteering most of his time to charity organizations that specialize in bringing lava awareness to the mainstream." In the latter case, Brea's picture is crossed out from the final group photo of the game.
In Gish, the player maneuvers the eponymous character, a 12-pound ball of tar. Besides movement Gish has four abilities: becoming sticky, slick, solid, and jumping/expanding. When sticky he can climb up walls, stick to ceilings, and plant himself firmly to a solid object. Becoming slick makes Gish slippery and frictionless, letting him slide down pipes and squeeze out of being crushed at same time getting under objects. Being in solid state turns Gish's body into a rigid weight, allowing him to push any object he might have squeezed under, fall faster, squash enemies, smash breakable platforms, sink in water, and resist being run over. To jump, Gish must first compress his body, then expand to launch himself into the air.
Gish's abilities can be combined for use in certain situations - for instance, while both sticky and slick he can climb walls without grabbing loose objects, and while slick and solid he can slide downhill at high speed.
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