DO YOU EVEN LIFT?!

Whenever dangerous experiments happen somewhere, there is always the risk of it going all wrong. Granted, it probably cannot get as bad as it is usually portrayed in video games or movies, mainly because their idea of bad means zombies, mutants, or demons. The game at hand is not very serious, on the other hand, since it was created for fun in a 24h jam.

DO YOU EVEN LIFT?! is a simple arcade game in which your goal is to rescue stranded laboratory workers using a lift, while trying to contain the mutant outbreak as well. The gameplay mechanics are about as simple as they can get, since you only need to move the lift up and down while opening the doors for the workers to get in. However, things get more complicated later on.

There is not much of a story to explain the events, but there is obviously no need for one anyway. All you need to know is that some kind of outbreak has occurred, and the military does everything it cans to rescue the workers. You even have a soldier that can kill the mutants with ease, although you cannot control him, so you need to put your trust in the AI.

After each successful mission, you are awarded coins, which can be used to purchase upgrades from the shop. These upgrades allow you to speed up the speed of the workers and the lift, as well as the soldier that protects them. They do affect the gameplay in some regards, but they just don’t feel very useful at first. The entire experience feels just a little bit too simple, even in the later levels.

Given the fact that almost everything but the lift and the doors is controlled by the AI, you mostly get to watch the screen in anticipation, which can get boring after a while. Sure, it is possible to amuse oneself by crushing mutants with the doors, but even that stops being fun in a rush. Thankfully, the graphics are smooth and quite colorful, even if not much changes about the map in between the levels.

In the end, you have to remember that DO YOU EVEN LIFT?! was developed in quite a short time, so it was never meant to revolutionize the genre. Hence, there is obviously nothing here to keep you occupied for hours, but the game can provide you with a few minutes of solid entertainment.