Australian indie developers have a knack for “keeping it weird”. Winnie the Pooh entered into the public domain a couple of years ago, which means that he can be used for… well, all kinds of things. Including, but not limited to, Winnie’s Hole, a roguelite video game from the deliciously twisted minds at Twice Different.
You may be quick to think that the concept is merely a joke, but after playing Winnie’s Hole at SXSW Sydney 2024, I’m here to report that it’s actually a bloody good video game that mashes together roguelite, puzzle-solving and turn-based strategy into something utterly appealing. In a kind-of-gross way, sure, but utterly appealing nonetheless.
In Winnie’s Hole (the game, not the… anyway), you play as a virus inside Winnie’s body and mind; your goal is to capture cells to mutate and build a deck of actions to unleash in combo-driven combat. This is achieved by exploring randomly generated worlds, and placing Virus blocks (think Tetris-like shapes) to spread through Winnie’s body. By doing so, you’ll discover new cells that do different things when you’re in turn-based combat against enemies.
“…as you encounter a friendly rabbit character and he pokes a stick into the gaping hole in your orange-bear gut…”
But let’s address the honey-eating elephant in the room. Winnie’s Hole, is a bit cringe. That’s intentional; as you encounter a friendly rabbit character and he pokes a stick into the gaping hole in your orange-bear gut, or while that same hole is sucking in the various flora as you walk through a field, feeding itself, it’s hard not to be a little disgusted. I, however, am a disgusting human, so I find it all a bit hilarious and can see the cheeky dark intention behind it. It’s a similar creepy-but-funny vibe that Ring of Pain delivered, from the same studio, and I’m totally here for it.
What impressed me most though beyond the icky bits is that the journey of placing blocks to collect resources and unlock new abilities is actually incredibly satisfying. Like placing puzzle pieces on a map and weighing up the pros and cons of each arrangement, it became tactical quite quickly, and I like the idea of defining my run based on this exploration mechanic, growing more powerful combinations as you go.
This is then backed up by entertaining turn-based battles, where the actions you’ve collected are dealt to a smaller board, forcing you to think about where to place your block shapes to hit combo moves. For example, a T-shaped block might be able to hit multiple attacks if placed correctly, but if the actions land in the wrong spots, you may have to sacrifice defence and risk taking damage. This need to adapt to your everchanging deck, built based on your virus exploration, makes for a tantalising mix that will have a lot of mileage for fans of the roguelite genre.
I only had the opportunity for one run of Winnie’s Hole while I was there, but it’s noted that you can evolve with each run and unlock new ways to customise and upgrade your virus. My main takeaway is that the trailers and concept sound wild and gross, but the game itself is coming along excellently, proving again that Twice Different is a game studio worth keeping a very close eye on.
Even after just one short session, Winnie’s Hole has managed to worm its way into my brain, much like the virus inside Winnie himself, and I can’t wait to play more. I hope people push past the odd first impression to find the well-crafted experience within.
Winnie’s Hole has a demo that you can play on Steam right now, with a planned release date of somewhere in 2025 – and don’t forget to Wishlist!
About the Author
Luke Mitchell
he/him
Luke spends his time making radio, playing video games, binge-watching TV, getting unreasonably invested in wrestling, hosting bear events and hanging out with his beautiful pets.
