Thunder booms outside as you silently dash toward a computer loaded with incriminating security tapes that you need to delete. As you run, however, the alarm you forgot to disable suddenly rings out! You panic as you see a guard walk to the door of the room you’re in, a result of your carelessness. Luckily, you anticipated this, and rewired the light switch so that it opens an electronic door. With a flick of the switch, it swings open and slams into the guard, knocking him unconscious. This is just one of the many experiences you may have in Gunpoint, a simplistic, yet fantastic 2D single-player puzzle game by Tom Francis.
   

 In Gunpoint, you play as freelance agent Richard Conway. After recently acquiring a pair of Bullfrog “hypertrousers,” a pair of pants that let you leap high and far, you takes contracts for Rooke Firearms to delete security tapes, putting you at a scene of a murder. As you work for Rooke, you encounter other figures needing your service, such as Rooke’s competitor, whose texts and missions lead to Conway uncovering a bigger plot that forces him to make a major decision. One interesting element of the plot is your use of dialogue trees throughout it-you can choose to respond to texts in a steely depression-era private eye sort of manner, or respond to someone using hilarious comments about the difficulty of your job. In one instance, you tell the police chief that he better “have a good morgue.” Even though it can be used to develop a Conway of your own, the dialogue tree tends to be no more than a gimmick for most of the game, but adds to the humor of it when combined with the amusing and sometimes profane remarks of other characters.
     

A major element of Gunpoint, which is also one of its strong suits, is hacking, made possible with the Crosslink. The Crosslink is a phone modification you purchase near the beginning of the game that allows you to rewire nearly any circuit of a building. The game’s interface, which is straightforward and makes using the Crosslink easy, allows you to click and drag a line from any device to link it to another. In other words, it allows you to rewire a motion detector so that, instead of activating an alarm, it overloads a power socket. You would further utilize this by activating the motion detector when a guard nears said power socket, thus overloading it and electrocuting the guard. This is what makes the puzzle element of the game fun-it is up to you to figure out how to rewire a circuit in order to subdue your enemies. The most satisfying parts of the hacking mechanic are the infinite number of chain reactions you can piece together, and watching your plan fall into place afterwards.
   

 Next to the hacking is the exhilarating infiltration of Gunpoint, which encompasses both combat and stealth. Conway’s Bullfrog hypertrousers (and the gloves that come with them) allow him to climb walls, hang onto ceilings, smash through windows two stories off the ground, and pounce on guards. Once again, the keyboard controls for all of these features are uncomplicated and contribute to a smooth gaming experience. The game allows you to take on a level in any way you want; you can choose to quietly slink through the dark past creeping guards, or you can opt to pounce on every guard you see and beat him to death. The game doesn’t limit you, either; there are multiple ways to beat a level undetected or commit a mass murder. Various items in the in-game shop can assist you in breaking in someplace, and there’s merchandise for every play style. An aggressive player can buy the Resolver, a handgun that allows you threaten and shoot enemies, and a sneaky player can buy the Hushcracker, a device that allows you to muffle breaking glass so as not to alert guards. In addition, the shop allows you to test any item you can afford, and also allows you to return the item at full price if you dislike it, a unique mechanic that urges the player to try out different methods of infiltration. In short, the combat/stealth of Gunpoint is diverse and allows for many play styles, with several in-game items that correspond with such strategies. 
     

Unlike the wonderful plot, hacking, and infiltration of the game, Gunpoint’s replay value is not exactly its strong suit. Although you can download new user-made levels and play completed ones again, Gunpoint has a short 20-mission campaign which is not worth revisiting. Do not let this dissuade you, however-even if the game offers 48 hours of gameplay at most, those 48 hours are jam-packed with quality content such as hysterical characters and intriguing puzzles.
   

 The art style of Gunpoint, on the other hand, is far better than its replay value. Although the art style of the game includes pixelated sprites and 2D graphics, it conveys the noir-like mood of the game perfectly and is appealing to the eye. The background landscapes featuring nighttime skylines, for example, makes the setting of the game (the city of East Point) feel rather gloomy and dark, almost as if you were in a modern-day detective fiction book. The beauty of Gunpoint doesn’t discriminate, either; even with a lack of graphical options, almost any computer can run it. In addition, the soundtrack of the game also fits the “modern noir” mood emphasized by the melancholia of the futuristic setting. It consists of several ear-pleasing “jazztronica” songs that have traditional jazz instruments, such as saxophones and pianos, but also contains computer-generated sounds. On top of that, the Crosslink interface mode of the game has its own soundtrack that sounds somewhat similar to the original, but is far more computer-generated.
     

Gunpoint has been nominated for the BAFTA Games Award for British Game and the BAFTA Games Award for Debut Game. It is available on PC and Mac on Steam and on Tom Francis’s blog for ten USD. The game has numerous strong suits such as witty dialogue, a simple yet appealing art style, intense puzzles, and fun gameplay. All in all, Gunpoint is definitely an enjoyable game and is worth your ten dollars. So, next time, don’t doubt the excellence of a game just because it was made by one guy in a thirty dollar program.