There's a scene in Thank Goodness You're Here where an aloof gardener finally gets his hard-earned sack of fertilizer to throw on a special tomato he’s cultivated while a middle-aged couple is subtly seducing each other in the foreground. They start shagging off-screen as the giant tomato gains sentience upon being splashed with the nutritious dirt and, like a cartoonish baby bird, starts calling the gardener his dad. The scene then smash-cuts to the gardener gulping down the last of his newly acquired tomato soup and swiftly moves onto the next gameplay segment as if everything that happened was totally normal. It’s absurd, slightly naughty, hilarious, and an incredible display of what Thank Goodness You’re Here excels at.
Thank Goodness You’re Here is a humorous adventure game with light platforming elements that moves through these sorts of non sequiturs as players help the local townsfolk. Whereas most games channel their comedy almost purely through the writing, Thank Goodness You’re Here lets users interact with these bits to great effect. This often manifests through slapping — one of the game's core mechanics — which is fertile ground for silly humor, as it's entertaining to see how characters and objects react to a tiny yellow man smacking them around. However, some of the japes play out in one-off, WarioWare-like segments where the interactivity is part of the punchline, a connection that shows how Thank Goodness You’re Here cleverly uses the medium to its advantage.
Thank Goodness You're Here Has Some Fantastic Running Jokes
Naturally, some of these interactive segments are too strange or flaccid to land, which applies to a few of the more scripted bits, as well. But that doesn’t overwrite how many of them are genuinely hysterical and expertly doled out in this tight adventure complete with a silly exaggerated art style that only elevates its wacky aesthetic. Some simply revel in their extreme British-ness, while others play the long con to fantastic results. Since it is set in just a few hubs that players run back and forth between, Thank Goodness You’re Here can establish running gags that get funnier with each new visit. As was the case with the interactive goofs, using backtracking, a core feature in many video games, as a means to tell jokes is an intelligent utilization of the medium and an efficient way to get more out of each of its small areas.
It’s not the most interactive experience, since most puzzles are remarkably easy and aren’t afforded much complexity from the simple jumping and slapping mechanics. The goals that gate progress are more excuses to poke around its comedic sandbox than true tests of intelligence or perception. This setup is a boon for pacing and allows the humor to flow consistently, meaning the simplicity at least enhances other parts of the game.
Thank Goodness You’re Here’s humor is its strongest asset, so the trade-off is worth it. Games don't usually prioritize comedy, much less nail it, and that makes developer Coal Supper's first full title that much more impressive. Like a lot of sketch comedy shows, a decent portion of the gags in Thank Goodness You're Here don’t hit their marks, but the ones that do are utterly delightful bursts of joy that are funny to both watch and partake in.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 92%
- Released
- August 1, 2024
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ // Blood, Crude Humor, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Publisher(s)
- Panic
WHERE TO PLAY
- Tightly paced
- Many comedic bits hit their mark
- The running gags are expertly doled out
- Some jokes don't land
- Most puzzles aren't the most interactive
Thank Goodness You're Here launches August 1, 2024 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Nintendo Switch. The Best War Games was provided with a PS5 code for this review.