Animal Puncher

I adore games that alter the view through which we view video game mechanics, and a game as incendiary as “Animal Puncher” is doomed to be dismissed for its surface values more often than most would care to dig into what is said. This aims to poke holes in power fantasies, and there’s definitely more to it than lame shocks, but it’s a shame that it falls short of offering true discussion, opting to give reasoning and backstory to its participants. It is a well-meaning game that could, and should, have done more to deconstruct interactive entertainment’s tendencies towards violence.

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