High Steel

High Steel is a combination of a platformer and a puzzle game. The player is a construction worker, one of the best at constructing skyscrapers out of pre-formed steel structures, who has now been called for a really tricky job. This building site has been infested with gremlins who make the job that much harder than it already is. The task at hand is simply to construct the buildings while not getting killed by the gremlins. To make it even trickier the contractor has set a time limit that has to be beaten.

The building site is viewed from a side perspective and the player can move the construction worker left and right. From above building material is sent down with a crane. To build a new floor the player first has to pick up and position vertical girders and then consecutive floor segments that are placed on top of these. Once a girder is in place the player can climb it to move between the floors. A floor is considered complete when it consists of five floor segments supported by at least two girders. In the first level one floor has to be completed and the number increases with one for every new level. In addition to the building material the crane will also deliver food and drink. When picked up the player’s score and energy level increases.

Various creatures roam the construction site trying to make the job harder for the player. Most common are the gremlins that drop from above and move across the floors. They can eat objects and floor segments and will stun the player if they hit him in the head. Gremlins also drop eggs that mothers hatch out of. The mothers are lethal to touch but can be killed by throwing spanners at them. Mothers can give birth to crawlers that are as dangerous as their mothers. Another creature is the spitter which grows out of girders and spits acid globules at the player. Other dangers include falling bricks and banana skins that the player can skid on.