Dude, Where Is My Beer? | PC Review

Beer has been around since 5,000 BC. It’s one of the oldest recorded recipes in the world. It is an essential drink for any party and is typically at every bar. Created by using natural ingredients like water, wheat, hops, and different varieties of fruits. Brewed by people with a vision to make your taste buds explode with the first touch of that delectable liquid on your tongue. Some of these beers come in multiple colors, flavors, and even alcohol content. However, there is one beer that stands out from the rest. A beer that is not only delicious, but puts any brewer’s skills to the test because it is hard to cover up any mistakes while brewing.

What beer am I talking about? If you said an IPA, slap yourself. Nope, it’s the world-renowned Pilsner. In a world of hipster beers, pilsners are known as the beer that can make or break any seasoned brewmaster. No mistakes can be hidden in a pilsner. This has led to many breweries steering away from a pilsner style beer. Instead making beers like stouts, IPAs, fruited sours, and ales. Not to diminish those breweries, but pilsners are a dying breed. To make you understand the slow decline of pilsner making, Arik Zurabian and Edo Brenes created a game that tells a story of the love for pilsners and what lengths someone will go for it.

The Station

In Dude, Where Is My Beer?, you are this middle-aged looking man, with a great moustache I might add, that is thirsty. The only thing that will quench his thirst is a great tasting pilsner. You soon realize that the bus driver has beer in a cooler on the bus, but is not willing to give you any. Not sure why he has beer in the first place as he’s driving, but he refers you to a local bar that would probably have a pilsner on draft.

Making your way into the bar, you soon find out that this middle-aged man is socially awkward and can’t talk to anyone but bartenders, unless he has some liquid courage in him. You ask the bartender for a pint of pilsner and he laughs at you. He tells you that there are no pilsners around the area, and offers a different crazy beer for you to try. Disgusted by this beer after drinking it, you notice that there is a bar in the top corner that references how tipsy, drunk, or sober you become.

Sober or Tipsy

The sober bar in the top corner helps you know when you can talk to random people. Otherwise, you can’t conversate with anyone in the area, making your mission more difficult to accomplish. Making it all the tougher to find that wonderful pilsner. The more weird and crazy sounding beers you consume, the more drunk you get. Wow, just like real life. There is one difference, though. At some point in the game, you encounter a lady named Sylvie that is believed to be speaking French. You can’t understand her at all, and you are sober. Fixing this remedy is as simple as pouring a beer down your gullet. Problem solved; you can now speak French. I wish this could happen in real life.

Halvliter

On your quest to find a pilsner in this weird world of hipsters, you will endure many challenges and tasks throughout town, such as: Making a baby stop crying by asking a homeless guy for an empty bottle. Pulling a wallet out of the toilet in order to switch it with a bar owner’s wallet to get his wife back by giving her his credit card. Reading the newspaper to find the winner of a beer competition to help the chef win a quiz at the local bar so that you may go into the kitchen. Talking to a French speaking lady that gives you a wine bottle so that the cork can be used to stop the leaking of the water fountain.

My favorite in Dude, Where Is My Beer? is changing the channel to a famous sports bar that has some sport on and upsetting everyone there. Just so that I can sneakily steal the bartender’s phone so that you can find out who a specific guy is, and eventually find out that they have a pilsner style beer called The Halvliter. You may have hit the jackpot. Yet, to find this person it’s time you asked around some more because the name is not a real name, and apparently the beer is hidden in a specific location. It is also banned by someone that apparently controls all the beers made in town.

Aesthetics

Visually appealing and oddly satisfying artwork compliments this game. It is packed with interesting color hues and funny looking people as well as beautiful backdrops. One of the main developers, Edo Brenes, is known for his artist portfolio featuring funny short comics and in-your-face adult humor. Not for the faint of heart of course, but bringing his expertise to the table was a great idea on Arik Zurabian’s part. I think this could be a great start to making really good games with that kind of artwork.

Final Thoughts

For those of you that know me, I don’t usually like point-and-click adventure games as they usually seem a bit dull for me. Nothing against them; they just aren’t my cup of tea. When I started playing Dude, Where Is My Beer?, I was a bit skeptical on the playthrough. Not wanting to just click on everything was a tough port over from my typical open-world adventure games. Although, I grew accustomed to the concept and enjoyed playing this beer centric game. A great way to show off the changing world of beer, and what makes or breaks a brewmaster. I am a firm believer that pilsners are slowly making a comeback and hopefully more breweries will start brewing or carrying more pilsners.

If you are not a point-and-click adventure game lover, I still implore you to try this out. Yes, Dude, Where Is My Beer?  is a tough game and will take you some time, but it’s worth it. If you like beer, check it out. You’ll be laughing like I did about some of the outrageous names that they have for beers. Like the Albanian Dry-Hopped Lavish Trappist Apricot IPA or a PPA. Like an India Pale Ale, but a Pakistani Pale Ale. Weird names for a weird game. Yet, a good game to pass the time while enjoying a few brews of your own. Hopefully a pilsner, but no judgement here you hipster. 

This review is based on a PC copy of Dude, Where Is My Beer? provided by the developer for coverage purposes.