Push Me Pull You

Gameplay

In a game of Push Me Pull You, two teams of sausage-like bodies with heads at both ends face off in a circle for territorial control of a ball. The game has two- and four-player modes. There is a hidden option to swap the human heads for those of dogs.

Development

Push Me Pull You was developed by four friends from Melbourne as the indie developer House House. They have said that the game is about friendship and wrestling. The game was named for the two-headed llama pushmi-pullyu from Doctor Dolittle, and was originally planned for release in 2014. It was exhibited at Game Developers Conference 2014 and the 2015 PlayStation Experience. The game was announced for the PlayStation 4 in November 2015. Push Me Pull You is expected for release for PlayStation 4 on May 3, 2016, and for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux later in the year.

Reception

Sam Kachkovech (Ars Technica) said that the game was the best among its contemporary wave of "couch sports" games (non-combat multiplayer with elements similar to old sports video games). He added that the game's aesthetic was reminiscent of Adult Swim. Jamin Warren (Kill Screen) wrote that the game's core gameplay has a "Koonsian quality of both innocent and grotesque". Alice O'Connor (Rock, Paper, Shotgun) called the game "David Cronenberg's Wrestleball". Andrew Tarantola (Engadget) compared Push Me Pull You to a combination of Greco-Roman wrestling, capture the flag, Human Centipede, and soccer. Megan Farokhmanesh and Allegra Frank (Polygon) praised the game as "one of the most fast-paced, unique, and entertaining additions" entries in the local multiplayer genre.