Groundhog Day came on Super Bowl Sunday this year. During the game, we got a commercial with Bill Murphy reprsing his role as Phil Connors. What a perfect time to check out the VR game which serves as a sequel to the movie. Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son, created by Tequila Works, puts the player in the town of Punxsutawney with a lesson to learn. And learn it you will as the days keep repeating and repeating.
Phil Connors Jr is a blogger who has inherited the bad traits his father had before the universe stepped in. He goes to his old hometown on, you guessed it, Groundhog Day. The next day, Phil wakes up at the beginning of the same day. If he hopes to break the time loop, Phil will have to discover how to be a better person. He will also help the people of the town just like his father did many years ago.
People might scoff at the idea of a VR sequel to a classic comedy. Like Father Like Son is not trying to reinvent the wheel. The team obviously has a respect for the film and it shows through the game. Phil feels like a separate person from his father. This also works as the game would feel wrong if dad had forgotten all the lessons. If there is one flaw in the storytelling, it’s that anyone with the name Connors would willing go back to Punxsutawney in February.
As you relieve the same day over and over again, you start to learn that there are people you can help. This is not as simple as just being in the right place at the right time. There are certain skills you have to learn. This takes the form of some fun and interesting mini-games. Once completed, you might get a new dialogue option that can help you move things along. The game is also aware that some tasks might get too repetitive and allows you to eventually get a few shortcuts.
Like Father Like Son has a art style that is cartoony. Think if the movie had gotten a Saturday morning treatment. Even with this, you will recognize the areas. The dinner is here as well as other areas from the film. The entire crux of the game is that you have to find the best solution for the problems you face. The game is about eight hours long, but it feels like an adventure and not a slog.
Like Father Like Son might have skipped your radar when it was released in September, but now is the perfect time to explore Punxsutawney once again. The game is fun and might surprise you with some of the emotional depth. This game hearkens back to a time when video game adaptions were all the rage. Most of them were not as fun as this one.
8/10
Available on PC and PS4 (VR Only)
