Developer Ahr Ech
Publisher Devolver Digital
Format PC (tested), Switch
Release Out now
When we talk about games being designed with their hardware in mind, it’s generally in reference to unconventional interfaces. The Wiimote duels of Skyward Sword, say, or Half-Life: Alyx’s ‘Jeff’ chapter requiring you to clap both hands to your mouth to stay quiet. Pepper Grinder, though, demands only that you play it with a controller – keyboard controls are technically possible, but bound in such a counterintuitive way that it’s almost certainly intended to deter you from trying. Because at its heart, this game is a celebration of the humble analogue stick.
Not that this is initially obvious. The movements
