Pepper Grinder

July 20, 2024

It is worth mentioning that Pepper Grinder (PG) appears to pull heavy inspiration from a wider-known indie game by the name of “Celeste”. PG shares similarities with its simple gameplay mechanics, storytelling, and visual department. These similarities even extend to the design of the character, Pepper, that you play throughout the game. Although there are many aspects to compare between the two titles, I intend to only focus on this title as a comprehensive review. PG is ultimately a different title with its own story and gameplay. Now that we got this asterisk out of the way, it's time to cover if this game is worth your time in the first place (spoiler alert, it is!)  

Here is some good news right off the bat: there is no doubt that Pepper is extremely fun to control in this game. However, before you feel this you are met with a blocker and a bit of loneliness. At the start of the story, you are put at an unfortunate disadvantage as you’re washed away at a shore. Origins and causes unknown, and left alone to fight for yourself. Finding the strength to get up and move, you immediately stumble upon a tool, an excavation drill to be exact. This drill might be the golden ticket to get you out of the sticky situation that you have been placed in. After obtaining this tool as fast as Link obtains the master sword in the first “The Legend of Zelda” game, you make quick notice of its explosive nature. Pressing the right shoulder button starts the drill while vibrating your controller, showing satisfying dust particles as it accelerates. You might not know this yet, but the drill that Pepper picks up at the start of the game is quite literally the key to life. Up close, it is the melee weapon to your enemies. Unbelievably so, it is also your first and main means of transportation. This drill is even used as a power source for other gadgets and gizmos that it can attach to like a Lego piece. This is all to say, this isn’t a tool that you would find on the clearance shelf at your local Home Depot. 

Using this excavation drill to traverse the world around you is simpler than it sounds. When the drill is running you walk up to a block of dirt/traversable landscape, or what the developers call “earth”, which causes the player to propel forward into that very land. The movement is comparable to slither.io in terms of fluidity, meaning you can traverse anywhere in the two-dimensional axis with limitations to how sharp of a turn you are allowed to make. It cannot be understated how incredibly satisfying this movement feels. The developers at Devolver Digital perfectly describe the overall sensation on the game’s landing page “Pepper Grinder is an action-packed 2D adventure blending traditional platforming with an alternate drilling mode that allows you to dive in and out of the earth like a dolphin swims through water". Like Spiderman slinging his way through Manhattan in every 3D console Spiderman game, Pepper Grinder embodies a similar liberating feeling when boring through the levels. All of this is probably due in part to to the incredible music that is played throughout the game, more on that later. 

The drill is your best friend when it comes to combat. Most enemies in this game are these green, bean-shaped goblins that chase after you when you get too close. Officially, they are known as “narlings” which you would only find out through unlocking in-game stickers. Confrontation with these foes is inevitable, so it is a good thing that running into them with the drill feels impactful. Doing this causes the game to stutter for a very short amount of time, probably no more than a couple of milliseconds. The feedback is extremely satisfying and never seems to disappoint. In some games, it might be seen as a chore to power through a barrage of enemies on a map. In Pepper Grinder, it is a sought-after feeling to crush the skulls of the narlings that have the misfortune of stumbling upon your path that day.

The gameplay ramps up very fast. As you advance throughout the game, you will stumble upon new maps, with their own set of levels. This design of the level picker is very reminiscent of how most 2D Mario platformers are laid out. The designs of each world range from the expected normal, cold, humid, and hot climates while also translating those design elements into the level themselves. The skill level needed to proceed goes up once you make your way to the second world, which incorporates lava into the levels. This small detail essentially adds a danger zone to areas all around areas. This increases the tension as more precise movements are now a requirement to progress through the game. Obstacles appear more frequent which can deplete heart canisters faster if your precision does not increase.

If you ever do find yourself needing more heart canisters, they can always be purchased in the “curiosity” shops scattered across the various world maps. The two accepted currencies are the common coins that you get by busting open most inanimate objects or slaying enemies using your drill, as well as the hidden “large” coins that you can find throughout the levels (which we will touch more on soon). Throughout my gameplay, I didn’t realize that the heart canisters were even at my disposal until about the halfway mark. Some of the levels would have seen much fewer attempts if I caught onto that earlier on. Despite this, the checkpoints do a decent job of preserving your progress at certain stretches of a level. The hidden coins found throughout the map can also be used to purchase customization items such as clothes, different wigs (that is what I’m calling it), different colored capes, and stickers. The basic gist with stickers is that there are a variety of them to unlock alongside different backdrops to put the stickers on. You can place them on the various backdrops, take screenshots, and bada-bang bada-boom. It has a cute first impression on the player but isn’t particularly fun outside the first five minutes. If digital sticker books aren’t your forte, you can also purchase a key at each shop to gain access to the locked levels of each map. In my experience, these levels are very fun to play through. Some of these show off unique mechanics that you will only see in some of these locked levels. My favorite level happened to be “Crystal Falls” in World Three, which makes use of falling snow that Pepper can traverse through as if it was any other still land. This particular locked level is the only level where falling terrain is used as traversable land to my knowledge, which is a shame seeing as how cool it would be to make use of it in other areas. Outside of the locked levels, the act of simply spending your hard-earned coins is also satisfying in and of itself. Since items are locked behind a gumball dispenser type of contraption, it’s fun to power up to gamble your money and what you’ll get each time.

Some of the Bosses in this game will make you want to go back and purchase a heart canister or two. Bosses in PG make great use of new traversal mechanics and put your skills to the test. At the early stage of each world, you are introduced to new traversal options, and that will play a big role in the overall design of the levels within that world. For example, in World Two you are introduced to a grappling hook that allows you to cling on when close, and swing until you decide to release and propel yourself forward. The grappling hook opens up a slew of movement options that the rest of the game builds off of. Just like many other 2D platformers, adding a new traversal mechanic is like breathing new life into what could be now possible with the level design of that game. The grappling hook forges new and exciting level design that would otherwise be impossible to do without it. In certain sections of the game, successfully pulling off the use of the grappling hook in conjunction with the drill invokes feelings of being a stealthy ninja.

So grappling hooks are fun, but what if we want the gameplay to be spruced up a bit more? The simple answer to that question is to add a gun. In addition to some traversal mechanics being sprinkled around the levels, some add-ons can be mounted onto Pepper’s drill to effectively shift the objective of the game on the fly. The turret attachment is the embodiment of this by a landslide. The gun is a constant fire when holding down the right shoulder. The best part of this item is that it is often placed on the map after walking past an unfair opponent. An example of an unfair enemy would be a narling wearing armor (which are canonically named “augerheads”), or a narling hovering over you with a blast cannon (incredibly so, these things are called “narcopters” which is also canon, pun intended). In one of the later levels, the turret is given to the player in conjunction with enemies appear left, right above, out of the walls. This change in gameplay completely turns this section of a level into a bullet-hell akin to something out of Cuphead. To preserve some of the excitement that new players will encounter, I will withhold the remaining various sick attachments that you will come across. Either way, the drill attachments do a great job at breaking up the gameplay. They are an entertaining way to shift the dynamic while allowing for unpredictable level design. 

As mentioned previously, throughout every level there are hidden coins that are absolutely begging to be located. The game uses its HUD to show how many of these coins the user has obtained at all times. The locations that you missed are exemplified due to the “X” that is over each coin in the UI. The constant reminder that you had missed something, coupled with the reminder in the level selector makes wanting to find all of the hidden coins that much more desired. It is wonderful when 2D platformers make use of this mechanic as it works so well for this category of games. Comparable to other games in this genre, the hidden coins in PG can require varying degrees of challenge to obtain them. Some are hidden behind cracked areas of the map which are brittle to Pepper’s drill and crumble down if drilled into them; requiring a keen eye to notice some of these areas. Others are hidden away at remote locations on the map that reward the player for noticing the oddity in the first place. Overall, the hidden coins remind me a lot of how most Mario 2D platformers also make use of hidden areas. Come to think of it, maybe this is why the shops scattered all across PG are named curiosity shops.

Pepper Grinder couples great-looking visuals with a captivating soundtrack. The visuals throughout the experience are very nicely put together. The pixilated art style does wonders with its use of bright colors and contrasts throughout the world. The monsters in this game use a saturated green that makes them stick out like a sore thumb. The lava in the second world glows wonderfully on the dark and atmospheric background. On top of all of this, there is no way to describe how pleasantly surprised you be to experience the OST of this game. A lot of the tracks are punchy and vibrant, and that is made very apparent with the use of a berserk synthesizer, insane drum work, and what seemingly sounds like an actual excavation drill. There is no doubt that the tracks know when to get mellow, serious when they need to be, and so on. A lot of the music incorporates a strong use of the bass, electric guitar, and drums, all of which are highlighted at appropriate moments. I highly suggest listening to snippets of the OST on Bandcamp here, where you can purchase it in full as well to support the artist. 

If there had to be something dislikable to mention, it would have to be how some of the cutscenes are handled. Not specifically anything with the cutscenes themselves, but with how the player is placed in a standstill while they progress. The cutscenes aren’t long in any way, and they get across what they need to convey in an acceptable time frame. My only issue with them is, and I am cherry-picking here, since this is not a story-driven game, the ability to walk around and control Pepper would have made it all feel a bit livelier. The only reason that this does not intervene with the experience too much is because the cutscenes are completely skippable if the player so decides to. A second, more valid critique, is that I would have preferred to have certain mechanics showed off a bit more before being introduced right before challenging levels or boss fights. This would help the player feel more adapted to the broadened movement before throwing them into the chaos that will unfold. Finally, my main critique is that I wish that the overall game was a touch longer. Overall, there are only four maps with each containing 6 levels on average (including the locked levels). Granted, there is replay value in a lot of these beautifully handcrafted levels. In addition, players should feel enticed to go back and locate the hidden coins that each level has to offer. Despite my assertions, I still believe that slightly more content would have greatly benefited the overall experience, especially if you aren’t going into this game with a completionist mindset. What encourages this final critique is due to the unique mechanics in the locked levels themselves. Making some more use of these short-lived ideas, or diversifying them more could’ve made this experience a lot more plentiful and exhilarating. The concepts are there but they leave you feeling that more could have been done with them. 

Pepper Grinder is a near-perfect experience that offers gameplay that will keep you engaged. It cannot be understated how well the controls feel, and how smooth the traversal is. Coupled with the various gizmodos that attach onto to Pepper’s drill, the game surprises you with what it can do when compared to what it initially presents. The level design and overall feedback are so fine-tuned that it feels like skating on a beautiful winter day and listening to the metal beautifully colliding with the chilly ice. This indie gem is worth every minute of your attention and will certainly entertain you without fail.

Rating

9.0 / 10