Bonelab

The game is the sequel to 2019's Boneworks and plays similarly. The player can use a body-log positioned on either elbow to change their avatar, which affects their in-game body proportions and ability to use items. The campaign takes place in smaller levels that each focus on different mechanics, from traditional first-person shooter levels to go-karting.[3] The player can also find "Gacha Capsules" that unlock props, NPCs, and weapons the player can use. The game has been compared to Garry's Mod and Half-Life 2 by critics and fans alike.

The game takes place sometime after the events of Boneworks. The player takes control of a peasant being executed in Heavens Reach, a town in Fantasyland. A knife appears and the peasant uses it to cut the noose and escape. They land in a cave leading out of Fantasyland. They reach an elevator, where a voice tells them that they are on their own now and welcomes them to LavaGang.

The elevator crashes and the player ends up in the Bonelab Hub, where they use a crane to place orbs so they can unlock a door. After going through an old rollercoaster game called Mine Dive, they find Jimmy, who gives them a device on their arm and transports them into a series of mini games to unlock avatars named after what their main characteristic is—a Street Fighter-type game to unlock Strong, a parkour level to unlock Fast, an arena wave game to unlock Heavy, a sandbox outer space level to get the Small character, a climbing level to get the Tall character, and a go kart level to unlock the Light character. Jimmy then activates the device on their arm, allowing them to pick between avatars at any given moment. The player uses a key to open a door and breaks a crate labeled Boneworks.

After defeating a series of Nullbodies and Omni-Projectors, the player is taken up back to Heavens Reach, where they kill most of the inhabitants of the town. They climb a windmill to grab onto a giant version of Jimmy’s arm, which pulls them up into “Void G114.” The player gets into Jimmy’s car, and as he drives the credits roll. When the credits finish, Jimmy drops the player off at the menu area and leaves to get another caller, leaving the player to restart the game.

Bonelab received "mixed or average reviews", according to the review aggregator Metacritic.[4]

PC Gamer criticized the campaign's pacing, but enjoyed the improvements to melee combat, "most avatars I inhabited could swing a sword or club with ease... Blunt attacks land with satisfying weight".[5] While disliking how prone the game was to causing motion sickness, Rock Paper Shotgun praised the gun handling of the game, writing that "the simulated weight and presence of Bonelab's two handed guns that makes it easy to keep track of where your hands are supposed to be".[6] Road to VR felt the title's modding support had vast potential, but wrote that Bonelab's campaign had the same problems as its predecessor.[7] UploadVR was impressed that the Meta Quest 2 version ran as well as it did, but noted numerous performance issues, "It’s certainly playable, but not a completely smooth experience".[3]