This is the one hundred ninety-third entry in the Scratching That Itch series, wherein I randomly select and write about one of the 1741 games and game-related things included in the itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality. The Bundle raised $8,149,829.66 split evenly between the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund and Community Bail Fund, but don’t worry if you missed it. There are plenty of ways you can help support the vital cause of racial justice; try here for a start. Lastly, as always, you may click on images to view larger versions.

Our one hundred ninety-third random selection from the itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality is bouncing into view on little cubes of goop. It’s Goopty Goo, by Dylan Brown, and its tagline in the bundle reads:

Stomp goop cubes and avoid the floor.

Pesky floors. I try to avoid them whenever possible.

Goopty Goo is a short and simple platformer. Its itch.io page estimates 10-20 minutes to play through it, but I think I may have finished even faster. On each single-screen stage, our noble protagonist Goopty-Goo must stomp on each of the goop cubes, which sounds simple enough. The twist? Once he stomps the first goop cube, he can’t touch the floor again until he’s stomped them all. Each stage is therefore a little challenge in how to bounce from one cube to the next, without breaking the sequence.

I like this one a lot. Players must actively trigger the first squishing of a cube by using the “stomp” button, so they are free to wander the stage first and investigate possibilities. When the stomping begins, it feels great, with lovely audio and visual feedback for each cube squashed. Most stages aren’t too tricky, but they feel really satisfying to clear. Later stages introduce some cubes with timers on them, so players must work out how to stomp them quickly, often leading to a counterintuitive route through the stage. But this is the only complication that Goopty Goo has, and the only one it needs. It’s a simple idea, executed well, and doesn’t overstay its welcome.

I also like the art. Backdrops are the striking reds and oranges of a blazing sunset, scattered over the clouds outside the tower. Sometimes there’s a glimpse of a distant bridge or another tower piercing the sky. The foreground, by contrast, is a deep black silhouette, marking the square edges of the platforms. Goopty-Goo and the goop cubes he must stomp are a pale green that stands out easily. It’s lovely, and looks great in motion too, with goop cubes collapsing into bits of jelly as Goopty-Goo is launched into the air again.

My only complaint is that the non-rebindable controls are left-handed only. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: the WASD keys are used so often because players need their right hand on their mouse. When games don’t use a mouse — like this one — it’s awkward to use WASD as the default movement keys. Technically, movement and jumping don’t need to be done with the same hand, since the space bar doubles with W as a jump key, but it was still awkward to play primarily with my non-dominant hand. Left-handed players may love the controls, but the best solution would have been to allow for key rebinds so players can adjust them however they wish. My personal preference would have been the arrow keys for movement and Z (or a similar key) for jumping.

That’s a minor gripe, though. I still happily stomped my way through Goopty Goo, and if you want a short but sweet burst of platforming fun I recommend you do too. Don’t worry if you missed it in the bundle either, because Goopty Goo is offered for any price you wish to pay, including free.

That’s 193 down, and only 1548 to go!