Thank you Bilge Kaan for providing us with a review code!

Bilge Kaan’s second game Stikir was released on Steam last year, and it was on my radar for a few months. I’ve heard talk that it’s like his previous game, Indecision, so I decided to check it out around the same time. Personally, while I don’t think Indecision is worth your time, Stikir is a great experience worth the $2.99.

Stikir, on the Steam page, is “a game about making a game”. Meta commentary aside, it’s mainly a platformer with some other minigame elements sprinkled within. You control a character avatar and need to focus on releasing a game in 6 months; however, a bunch of distractions prevent you from doing this, and you’ll need to fight bosses and find out what’s going on in this world of bug-ridden nonsense.

To say Stikir is incomprehensible is an understatement; however, that’s also what’s charming about the game. It feels like the developer put a lot of time and effort in programming these random events, and the absurdist presentation is charming. Mechanics switch around frequently as you do everything from racing to shoot-em-ups and even a Mega Man-esque boss battle with a gun. These sequences are all pretty entertaining to play, and the music is perhaps some of the best I’ve heard in an indie game recently. It goes from playful, exciting tunes to bombastic jazzy numbers, and I wish there was a way to buy the soundtrack separately; it’s that good.

One main issue I have with the game is that it’s pretty short; the experience can be completed within an hour, and while that isn’t much of an issue, there are tons of gameplay concepts that are underutilized. I can see how this is a commentary about how a developer’s ideas can go about unused, but it would be neat to see these implemented and fleshed out. In addition, there were some frustrating segments that are exacerbated by the fact that mechanics aren’t explored, such as a boss battle with a dragon that has an unpredictable arc of movement. Getting hit once will normally bring you back to the beginning of a level or fight, which is annoying when the battle is lengthy, and you have to start all over. This only happens a handful of times, and the rest of the game is enjoyable otherwise.

In terms of moral content, while it does seem a bit creepy due to a lot of random elements in place, the game is mostly devoid of objectionable content. However, there are instances of goofy and cartoony violence, including a scene where a hand gets bitten off and you end up fighting the arm with a bone sticking out of it in a later battle. You’ll have to defeat some enemies using a gun as well, though nothing explicit occurs in these fights.

Stikir is only $2.99, and it’s a bite-sized experience that’s fun and sometimes frustrating, but something that you should check out if you want a little break from longer games.