Underfoot is a cute game, loosely inspired by Lemmings.

Now I must note that I was conflicted whether or not to deem this game a fangame, as it does strongly refer to an existing franchise. Yet, gameplay-wise, the game has very little to do with the original franchise. In the "Review Club" I placed it under "fangames" rather to be safe than sorry, actually.

In stead of 60+ lemmings running around mindlessly, Underfoot centers around 1 single lemming. A very cute female named Lemina. You can fully control her with the arrow keys and Lemina has special tools at her disposal you can use with the C,X and V keys. Lemina can also jump.

The game's mechanics are easy to understand. Lemina has to reach the exit which is always at the lowest section of the current level. On the way she'll have to dig her way through the blocks. Note that each block can have a different color, and the color determines how many hits a block needs to be dug through. Help Lemina find her way down to the exit, and be sure to collect money. Mind the time, if it runs out a supermonster will haunt Lemina and very likely kill her.

The darkness effect adds extra difficulty to all this.

At the end of every level, you come at a small bonus level, where you can collect an extra bonus in the form of extra HP, Bombs or money. It is of course what you deem best.

The game was written in Flash, and since Flash is dead by now, you cannot play this game anymore in a browser window. That is unfortunate, but the way it is. Luckily the developer decided to make a downloadable version with a Flash Wrapper. So the game remains preserved.

I will not overload this game with superlatives on how "brilliant" it is, as the game is very simplistic and maybe even a bit amateur. Yet the game does provide fun, and hit it where it counts. Some nice amusement. The game can even get a bit addictive. With every new level some new elements are added in the form of new enemies, and perhaps the sidebar looks very simplistic, it is still well organized and provides all the information I need to make decisions or which route may be best. You'd also do well not to underestimate the challenge the game offers, as a wrong turn which can really get you into trouble is easily made, and the easy way down is not necessarily the best way. Some alertness is still to be kept in order.

A few "bad" things are maybe the lack of a savegame (or to speak in original Lemmings wordings a level password system), and when you die, it's immediately a full game over, taking you back to the title screen. Perhaps some rogue-like-fans will love that approach though.

If you are not prejudiced on games that have a more simplistic approach, and you need a game to fill some loose hours with, I can definitely recommend to give this game a try.

To download and play underfoot click here.
The game has been brought to you by: @WAtheAnum

Enjoy!