Oh…Sir! The Insult Simulator was a prototype made in 42 hours during the amJam game jam event which was hosted by Artifex Mundi. It was a 1v1 couch co-op game where each player takes turns to build an insult out of words and sentence fragments that in turn make sense and also make their opponent reach for that aloe vera to apply to that vicious burn.
I enjoyed what I played of the prototype, thought of all the various features that would improve the game, uninstalled it and then moved on with my life. It came as a complete shock that a full game was actually being developed as I was totally unaware of it and didn’t think it warranted a full game. That being said, Oh..Sir! generated a lot media of attention when its prototype was released for free in December 2015, so I really should not have been surprised.
Well to start with, Oh…Sir! has added a lot of things that were missing from the initial prototype and solved a number of problems with the game too. First are game modes: the original games relied on couch co-op, so players had to play against one other whilst being present at the same computer at the same time, which was fun, but there were no single player modes. Oh…Sir! has introduced a ‘insult the CPU’ mode which allows you to play in a one off instant argument or a tournament, where you insult your way through different arguments to unlock new levels and characters. This mode is fun if playing alone, if a little unbalanced. The computer AI doesn’t always work out which insult works best or plans ahead; “Your math teacher is your sense of style!” I was affronted with during my time with the game. The best addition is easily the ‘Insult On-Line’ mode which basically sets you up to insult a random stranger and vice versa. This was the most requested addition to the game following the prototype from what I’ve read.
Still the best mode is the couch co-op mode. There’s just something about telling the person sitting next to you that their mother is a platypus and you can prove it. The insults have the ability to be both silly and cutting, insinuating that one’s hovercraft is old, or simply stating that their mother will kick the bucket – sometimes this game gets dark! The insults really makes the game come alive and if there’s a few of you playing it, it can easily be a good laugh and makes a fun party game.
There’s a lot of fun to be had with Oh…Sir! and the insults can be silly, fun and inventive. There are some downsides, however. While the developers have added many new variations of insults into the game to create variety during arguments, the arguments themselves feel a little samey and there is a tendency to end up seeing the same themes repeat during different arguments. This may however be updated before the game launches. Also, I managed to complete the single-player tournament mode in little over half an hour so I do have to question how much longevity the game has. I’d like to see more single player modes but not sure how they could mix up the formula.
Oh…Sir! is a fun, silly little game and being priced at under £2 you can’t really go wrong. The single player side was never going to have longevity, but for the price,it’s worth it for the multiplayer modes alone – you can have a lot of fun insulting the person sitting next to you. This game isn’t going to change your world, it can be a little repetitive but is also daft, nonsensical and a lot of fun.
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