Despite looking slightly creepy, Penko Park is a fun and interesting game where you won’t be scared for long.
Lately, I have been enjoying games with strange creatures – something that looks like the world outside, but isn’t exactly the same. For that reason, Penko Park made it’s way into my game time. The game is creepy but somehow adorable. It’s an adventure game where you need to take pictures of weird monsters and bugs, in various expressions, to add to your journal.
Nobody has been to the park in a long time, your guide tells you. You can tell this is true because the ground has been overgrown, wildlife is everywhere, and some parts of the path aren’t even currently accessible. Regardless, you are ready to go on and check out what this park has to offer. With your camera (and limited film) you will move forward in a cart, unable to break or stop, taking pictures of the oddball creatures. When you take a successful snap, you will get a star rating for that creature and the mood they are in. Some creatures have multiple moods, while others have only one.
You have limited film, but the goal is to get a 3-star rating of each creature in each of their moods. Some need to be found later on the trail to discover them in different moods, while others just need you to interact around them. Once you have reached the end of the line, you will be able to place your new photos (and any artifacts you picked up along the way) into your journal, gaining some XP for your troubles. The XP will level up your character, giving you a stamp.
You can then use these stamps to unlock the next feature on a feature tree, giving you new tools to interact with the world or the ability to go to new areas of the park, which will then help you find better angles and new creatures to take pictures of. It’s a fun game where you will continue to start at the same spot, but you will end up going to many different locations around the park. I found unlocking these different areas to be very interesting, as there always seemed to be new characters, artifacts, and more.
Once you unlock the grappling hand, you are able to interact with small golden buttons, giving you information on the various characters, as well as pick up items and pop flowers, giving you so much more range in taking your own pictures.
Despite looking slightly unsettling, Penko Park is a fun and interesting game where you won’t be scared for long once you get used to the world around you.
Penko Park is available now on Steam.
