The newest update for Dung Ho! launched on Steam in late October, and its publisher saw fit to let us know in hopes that we would in turn let you know. And, well, it's a game about beetles pushing balls of dung. It looks pretty good, even. So, I didn't see how we could refuse.
Dung Ho! released on Steam back on March 12 of this year. Since then, it has seen a steady flow of additional content, including a Pirates of the Veld update on July 28 that added new enemies, challenges, and various other nonsense. More recent updates, including multiple ones in October, added the option to push around sherbet instead of dung, as well as a friendly spider named Priscilla. There's also Beetle Golf, which provides 18 holes of golf.
In Dung Ho!, players participate with up to five friends online in an event that developer Lesser Weevil describes as a "scientifically accurate-ish co-op adventure." The only goal is to bring home the dung, but that can be a Herculean task because you're doing it in Africa, where the other wildlife cares little about your plight. And then, of course, there are the other beetles who want your treasure for their own.
I haven't played a game about dung beetles in ages, since Dung Beetles on the old Apple IIe. That game was a solitary pursuit, a Pac-Man clone with mazes that were too big to comfortably clear. It was an exercise in frustration, whereas this newer adventure offers vibrant environments and a sense of whimsy that I genuinely appreciate... from afar.
Credit: Lesser Weevil
Credit: Lesser Weevil
Credit: Lesser WeevilMultiplayer games aren't really my thing these days, but if they were, I'm confident I could have fun with something as creative as Dung Ho! seems to be. And it certainly makes a change from gunning down enemy soldiers from wherever in the latest military shooter. You might argue that as an alternative to those other games, it looks a bit crap. But that's sort of the point, right?
Dung Ho! is currently available on Steam for $5.99. Presently, it's also available in a bundle with We Gotta Go! for $9.88. I'm sensing a theme there, and I don't even mind.
