Completely Stretchy Review

Thanks to my friends who introduced me to some of the dumbest games I’ve ever played, goofy games have become one of my favourite genres to dive into when I need a laugh. The second I saw Completely Stretchy I knew I was in for a hilarious time. It reminded me of one of the funniest games I have played PHOGS!, since they both have silly character designs and stretchy bodies. And I was right, Completely Stretchy is a barrel of laughs and I still can’t stop playing or laughing at it.

The game begins with you waking up to your annoying alarm to go to work, which you’ll be required to destroy. You’ll get ready and head to the station to begin your work day, which you happen to be late to. Once you arrive at your place of work, Dr Grimble needs your help with the Elektros in the Lab – this is where your life changes. Suddenly an error occurs and it’s up to you to fix it, but as you do an explosion erupts in the Lab and now you’re accidentally merged with the Bloop. In essence this means you’re changed to an odd blue colour compared to everyone else’s normal beige, and you’re stretchy too.

From here on, you’ll be rescuing the many Elektros found throughout Grombi Isles, which look a lot like the cute Soot Sprites from Studio Ghibli. The Elektros help power the Isles, and there are many around to collect. You’ll go on quests and uncover the interesting mysteries of the Isles, all thanks to your stretchy blue arm. The story is easy to understand, and really the Grombi Isles are here to make you laugh, have fun, and not use your brain too much to enjoy the experience.

Potty training in Elektro?

Completely Stretchy is a wacky 3D platformer that requires you to make use of your sticky stretchy arm to swing around, and surprisingly for a world that doesn’t have any other stretchy people, Grombi Isles is made for exactly that. The controls are simple and easy to master on either keyboard or controller and although there isn’t a dedicated sprint button, you can use your arm to pull yourself to your desired locations fast. It’s mostly intuitive and simplistic, but some players may find the controls of the stretchy arm rage-inducing in certain moments.

Although there are only three islands in Grombi Isles, they are packed with interesting quests, people, and diverse locations. You can explore the Nature Isle, the Industrial Isle, and the city with the help of your map. You’ll do quests across the three locations, such as finding lost children and stolen books, along with uncovering secrets on your travels through the air and underground. Not to mention, there are some awesome hoverbike races to compete in.

Luckily, you can upgrade your arm with Bloop which makes you stickier and stretchier as you progress and explore the game. This allows you to use your arm more before you’re needed to touch the floor as it times out after a certain number of grabs. You’ll also find tools such as a watering can to grow plants, which helps you get to places you couldn’t before. You would think these upgrades and tools would help you defeat enemies too, but there are surprisingly none in Completely Stretchy but the relative pacifism is befitting of the environment the game creates. Despite only a handful of gameplay hours, its playtime is just right as things aren’t dragged out for a long time.

What a nice purple view

Everyone in Grombi Isles looks like a humanised blobfish, with weird interests, and funny dialogue. There are all kinds of people, those with no arms or one leg, some who are just giant, and the list goes on. When it comes to the environment, it’s fairly simple with basic clear designs and colours so you understand where you are and what types of locations you are going into, regardless of being on another planet. Although the simplicity adds to the alien look, I do wish there was more depth in certain areas which can be a little flat and lifeless.

The soundtrack is perfectly fitting for the goofy nature of Completely Stretchy, it adds to the absurd nature of everyone you come across, and the quests you’ll be required to do. It is funky and reiterates that when you look at the people in Grombi Isles, there are no thoughts behind their eyes, at least no seemingly normal ones.

The dialogue is one of the funniest parts, along with the weird locations you’ll find others in, and what they are doing. This is what makes Completely Stretchy the comedic game it is. You’ll find others being spies, staring into the void, spinning viciously fast, and much more. They are also always aware of your presence. When you come into the vicinity of anyone no matter where you are their heads will turn staring at you, even if it involves them turning their heads 180 degrees. Nothing is predictable when it comes to what the civilians of Grombi Isles are doing.

I’m sure it is Scroob

Unfortunately, there is no multiplayer mode in Completely Stretchy, and I believe if it had this feature I would come back and play with all my friends, especially in the hoverbike races. But other than this thought, I found there to be not much in the replayability aspect. However, if I did want to return sometime later to laugh again at the experience Grombi Isles gives you, I would.

There are many references to pop culture in Completely Stretchy as well which will add to the laughs you’ll be having throughout the entire game. It’s aware of how current humans talk, but it will have its own spin on words, such as coffee being named sploffee. To add to this, everyone’s name is hilarious and fitting to the character they are. Such as a character getting head pats called Patterson and the patter called Pati, someone praising a statue of Grombi called Brombi, and a character learning how to fish called Sploshi. In names alone, Completely Stretchy will have you smiling.

Final Thoughts

Completely Stretchy is the perfect game if you are looking for a couple of hours of fun on your own, full of laughs. Its simple 3D platforming gameplay with your stretchy arm makes it easy for anyone regardless of gaming expertise to master. Despite only a couple of hours of gameplay, it’s just enough time to uncover a simple story and live amongst bizarre characters doing weird things in even weirder locations.

Reviewed on PC // Review code supplied by publisher

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