Gravity Bone

Gravity Bone is an adventure video game that lasts around 20 minutes. It is a first-person game set in the fictional city of Nuevos Aires. The player controls an unnamed spy, and is tasked with accomplishing several missions across its two stages. At the end of it, the player-controlled spy is killed by an unknown woman after chasing her through the last half of the second level. It was designed to leave the player without a clear idea of how its story evolves.

During these missions, objectives and guidance are provided through the player's interactions with objects and environments. The tutorial system used to demonstrate routine gameplay elements such as object interaction and movement is disguised as the first level of Gravity Bone. Here, the player is tasked with the delivery of a contaminated drink to an unspecified non-player character. After the first level is completed, the player is sent to the second level, which follows the pattern of the first; the player is assigned a set of actions and goals involving platforming sequences.

Gravity Bone was developed by Brendon Chung under his video game studio Blendo Games. Chung, who worked as a level designer for Pandemic Studios, has contributed to the development of titles such as Full Spectrum Warrior and The Lord of the Rings: Conquest. Four incarnations of Gravity Bone were produced during its one-year development. Chung commented during an interview with FidGit that "Gravity Bone started out very different from what it was and ended up getting scrapped ...

so on and so forth until this version came out." The first version of Gravity Bone featured more typical first-person shooter elements than the released version, and was based on a series of Quake 2 maps entitled Citizen Abel. He elaborated that the first version had the player running around with a gun, "shoot[ing] things and stuff explodes." Development shifted in a new direction, and Gravity Bone was transformed; the player would act as a computer hacker, "hacking stuff all the time."

Charles Onyett from IGN applauded Gravity Bone, saying that it is "a game that appears to toy with the notions of heroism and villainy, and the ways the player identifies with, and is directed toward, both roles." He praised all aspects of it, commenting, "the cohesiveness of its striking visual presentation, soundtrack and effects, and almost entirely incomprehensible story combine to create an atmosphere of peculiar strength." Onyett concluded his preview by stating, "it's a pleasure to experience, and never ceases to delight and surprise over its short run." Anthony Burch from Destructoid gave a positive review, stating that it "is so stylistically unified, so consistently cool and weird and imaginative, that it's damn near impossible not to fall in love with—even as it ends and you're wondering what the hell happened, and why."

He also applauded several technical and design aspects, expressing appreciation for its "stylistic choices", as well as the "nigh unbelievable" bloom effects featured. Burch concluded that Gravity Bone is "a great ride", and that the "atmosphere and style alone will barrel you through to the journey's end, which comes all too soon."