Horace
Developer Paul Helman, Sean Scaplehorn
Publisher 505 Games
Format PC, Switch (tested)
Release Out now
P aul Helman and Sean Scaplehorn’s wilful, surprising narrative-led platformer is a game of many parts, but mischief is probably its defining feature. Its star – a kind of robot butler that steadily gains sentience – may be mild-mannered, but there is a bit of the devil in his game. From a streak of impish, occasionally near-the-knuckle humour to its affectionate borrowing from a variety of largely unfashionable sources, it’s gloriously out of step with contemporary trends, and that alone carries it a long way. This is a fascinating piece of outsider art that combines its wide-ranging influences into something that somehow feels entirely its own thing.