by Bonzo, HSM Editor 

There’s a new game in town, courtesy of VEEMEE: Home Grown Laboratory.

The first thing which struck me about this new space are the giant fighters in the ring. Granted, this space isn’t exactly new, but it is new to North American region. True, there was a merged region for this space, which allowed region-hopping users to access it — not technically by design, or kosher as far as TOS regulations go, but it was there. And many North American users took advantage of it. However, region hoppers don’t get rewards; your account tracks purchased content, and your account profile has a designated country of origin which you specify when you create an account, so this prevents region hoppers from collecting rewards when you enter a region that is foreign to you.

This game is an interesting take on the fighting game, because it isn’t directly combative. You play a mini-game to fill up a bar, which is a “Simon Says” style follow-the-button pattern. The more accurate you are, the faster you fill the bar — and subsequently win the round by delivering a devastating blow. It’s very similar to the mini-game for the Street Fighter X Tekken Total Game Integration in the Hub not long ago. The game itself is another mini-game effort, which is what we have come to expect from Home games of this ilk. This style doesn’t devalue it, but just makes it a style we have come to know: uncomplicated and limited, in order to deal with latency and other technical issues. However, this game does carry a lot of charm.

The premise is basically lab experiments gone awry. Creatures which were modified for the purpose of fighting are created in this massive edifice which is more factory than laboratory. You get to choose between several atrocities of science, from a giant pink monstrous bunny, to a tongue-lolling zombie. The animation is really the most interesting element of the game because the fighting itself is so detached once you complete the mini-game. If you succeeded in filling up your bar first, you are treated to a fight sequence with your character as the victor. The sequence isn’t exactly over dramatic — mostly your opponent getting a vicious chop or a kick to the nether regions, really. Painful to watch for any one with a Y chromosome. The animation is very smooth, and looks cartoonish, but is nonetheless quite charming. The game isn’t like a Mortal Kombat, or even a Marvel Vs. Capcom — it doesn’t take itself so seriously.

You can tell the developers at VEEMEE just had fun with this game, and it shows. It’s comical and surreal, like a Bugs Bunny cartoon with Gossamer the giant red furry monster. (In fact there was an episode where they parodied Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, when he turns into a monstrous bunny after drinking a formula in “Hyde and Hare.”)

This update didn’t come up as just the game by itself. The store was updated as well, with several wearable items from hoodie sweaters to varsity jackets and foam hands. The foam hands are interesting because they aren’t just the typical number-one signal with the index fingers held up; they include a gun-holding hand, a paw, a clawed hand, and one which I don’t know what you call it but I know it as a West Side symbol, which is a staple of the Hip Hop scene.

Each hand represents different teams, except for the number-one index finger hand which is just representing the entire Home Grown Labs game. But the gun hand represents the military Troops team, paws the Critters team, clawed hand the Undead team, and the other the Sonics team. Bundles include a creature habitat space with a trophy of the corresponding creature you purchase, allowing you to pick the cheapest space bundle with just one creature or purchase the highest-priced space bundle which includes all of them. You have the option of adding the rest if you buy the bundle with only one creature, but then you end up paying more than you would with the all-inclusive bundle.

The space itself is comprised of a couple of levels, with a console which allows you to change the creature in the habitat at the moment at any time and depending on if you own that creature. You see the giant NPC in the habitat, and the screens simulating the creature’s environment change accordingly depending on which creature you have active. The interaction is very limited, but it’s like keeping your own King Kong around in a pen. The statue you purchase unlocks each corresponding creature in the Habitat if you own that space, and unlocks the creature as a playable character in the Home Grown Labs public space arena.

The integration between a public and personal space is always a welcome one; this is unique in that you are keeping this living creature around as your prize fighter. All political issues aside from that notion, once you get past the disturbing message, the interesting interactions are unique in the Home universe. Seeing an animated NPC in an environment which you use in a public space game makes it a little more worth the purchase, as you get more than just an inanimate object to put out for display from time to time. Personally I wish the interactions were a little deeper, but for what they are it is a unique and interesting addition to Home. The limited fighting method leaves a lot to be desired, but it is an interesting approach and a stylistic design which makes it at least humorous if nothing else.

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