The Walking Vegetables

I have a soft spot for the small, weird ones that slip past the algorithm, and The Walking Vegetables from solo developer Still Running is exactly that kind of game. It's a top-down twin-stick roguelite set in a gloriously absurd 1980s where alien invaders have weaponised the produce aisle, sending zombie broccoli, mutant tomatoes, and worse straight at your face. The premise is pure B-movie nonsense, and the game commits to it completely, which is half the reason it works. The core loop is clean and satisfying: move through procedurally generated city maps, clear outdoor zones and optionally loot buildings for better gear, then face a mini-boss before the campaign boss doors open. Weapons sit in up to four slots simultaneously, ranging from standard pistols and shotguns through Tommy Guns, AK-47s, rocket launchers, and melee options that can actually deflect incoming projectiles. Ammo is finite on everything except your starter pistol, so you're constantly making quiet decisions about when to spend your plasma rifle charges and when to hold back. Bosses carry the name Broccoliath and things similarly absurd, and they are genuinely tough, meaning you'll want a full loadout going in. Beyond weapons, there are over twenty passive skills unlocked by meeting in-run criteria, slottable up to four at a time, which is where the build depth quietly lives. Akimbo, Pulpinator, Tongue of Steel: the names alone tell you the tone. The aesthetic is the other thing worth talking about, because Still Running clearly thought hard about it. VHS-flicker artifacts, saturated neon pink and blue, and a retrosynth soundtrack that one reviewer described as a fantastic 80s aesthetic that you just want to soak in. It sits in the same visual neighbourhood as Blood Dragon or the Hotline Miami colour palette, cheerful rather than grim, and the music carries that mood across every run. Fair warning to photosensitive players: the screen flashes heavily, even on menus, and that's worth knowing before you load up. The criticisms are real but narrow. Enemy variety is the most consistent complaint across reviewers, with the weapon pool clearly outpacing the roster of things you're shooting. Level architecture is functional but not memorable, rooms can feel samey after a few hours, and a single clean run can technically be done in under half an hour if you know what you're doing and get lucky. The replayability rests on score-chasing and skill unlocks rather than story, so if neither of those hooks land for you, the mileage drops fast. Keyboard controls have a quirk where the character snaps clockwise when walking into obstacles, which is minor but noticeable before you switch to a controller, where everything feels tight and responsive. Local co-op is present and genuinely improves the experience, but there is no online multiplayer. What I keep coming back to is that this game knows exactly what it is. It's not trying to be the next Enter the Gungeon. It's a compact, handcrafted, funny little roguelite with a great soundtrack and a premise it wears without embarrassment. For genre newcomers it's a gentler entry point than most, since the health bar and top-up system replace the punishing one-hit kills common to the space. For veterans there's enough skill stacking and run variety to stay interesting across multiple sessions. The Steam community reception sits in very positive territory, which, for a game this underseen, says something real.

Kai · Scout Team

Indie & narrative

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