If there is one thing that can be relied on as a constant in gaming these days, it is that in terms of major releases, Summer is the slow period. Honestly, look back at what we've been forced to endure these past few months. Not exactly a bunch of GOTY candidates huh? With the exception of the release of probably the most disturbingly popular RTS game's sequel, there is almost nothing going on... until you look into the independent market. It seems while the big boys take their time to render their space marines and giant aliens for the Holiday rush, a bunch of smaller developers have tried to explore what can be done with technology today, and thus here I am reviewing two interesting specimens on the Indie market; namely Limbo and AAAaaaAAAaaaAAAaaaAAA!!!! A Reckless Disregard for Gravity. Let's start off with the XBLA exclusive.
Couldn't find a title pic, but this pretty much says it all
The story of Limbo is...well, interesting. According to the game's explanation, you play as a boy named Tom, who has lost his sister and has stumbled into a mysterious forest in order to find her. That's about all you'll get out the game if you're looking for a story. The real story of Limbo is how you will explore and pretty much realize how messed up this place is.
The gameplay of Limbo boils down to a 2-D side-scrolling physics platformer. If you can imagine a level of Super Mario Bros. with Little Big Planet's physics then you're on the right path. Also, while you have that image in your head, change it to black and white. You'll go to the right, solve small physics puzzles and occasionally come across a few water hazards. So how is this different from the two games that I just mentioned? Well, the platforming is somewhere between deceptively simple and split-second precise, and if you fail these sections you get to see a little boy killed horrendously only to respawn a few feet away looking bewildered.
Should we tell him? Nahh, he'll find out.
Which brings me to the selling point of Limbo, its atmosphere. The sounds in this game are very ambient and downright disturbing. Not in the means of actively messing with your head like the sounds in The Path, but more the road of establishing dread and uncertainty, like a dream you realize is slowly turning into a nightmare. The black and white art style might come off as art house pretentiousness at first, but when put into practice, makes for some pretty clever set ups of terror. Like realizing those branches you were climbing on were actually the legs of a giant monster. Another point in Limbo's favor is how it breaks the gaming convention of a level system. You always restart at the most recent puzzle or challenge but never once is there a "Level Complete!" message that pops up. You just keep going down the rabbit hole, dying and respawning the whole way.
In other words, basic gameplay elements aside, Limbo is what I like to see in an Indie game, exploring what can be done and what can be pushed. Good news is in the end, the experiment worked and gave us a moody disturbing platformer. Now if only they could lower the price from 1200 Microsoft points...
Next up, available on Steam for the low low price of $9.99 USD...
If you haven't guessed the premise of this game yet, let me be upfront about it, it's a BASE jumping game. In other words, you leap off a high point, free fall for a while, glide around, then land, preferrably with a parachute. Now that you've written this off as a sports game, let me blow your mind when I say it's actually pretty fun.
The story of Loud Scream while Falling is pretty much your standard Futurepunk affair. It's the future, corporations are dicks, we have flying houses and cars now, and instead of skateboarding, people jump while spraypainting graffiti and flipping off protesters to stick it to the man. Guess who you play as?
The good news when it comes to playing Reckless Disregard for Safety is that not only does the gameplay work but it also doesn't take itself too seriously. This is the antithesis to Limbo's moody dark trek down the woods. You play My Head May Go Splat for the shear thrill of beating an old high score while trying to time your landing just right before you turn into street jelly. Even the art style, while having some pretty funny posters, is reminiscent of those semi-futuristic looking arcade games of yesteryear. The kind of game that you would see come with a VR helmet and some knock-off power gloves, except it actually works this time.
Dude, it's like I'm actually watching someone BASE Jump through a city...wait a minute.
At the same time, Guys Who Think They Can Fly is aware that repetition isn't really fun, so there is a surprisingly good difficulty curve that is covered up by a simple "you need X of currency to unlock" system. Meaning that by the time you unlock X amount of levels, you'll be introduced to new gameplay elements, such as the Flip-It Glove that allows you to flip off or give thumbs-ups to corresponding people, or telling you how to pull of unique tricks like the Flying Nun or Threading the Needle.
The game isn't perfect by any stretch, its attempts at humor sometimes fall flat and some of the levels can get obnoxiously hard around the end. But, Disregard for Gravity still keeps its charm whether you're playing it for the first time or the fifth. The rationale is the same for a Suda51 game, the flaws are irrelevent because its uniqueness makes up for it, and at ten American dollars there's not much to lose.
Bottom Line: I'd say if you have the opportunity and want to try something different or just want something to play, you could do a lot worse than these two games. Pick which one you think you would like and enjoy.
Extra Punctuation
MovieBob: Intermission
Experienced Points
First Person
Miracle of Sound: Encore
Exploding Barrels
Loading Time
No Right Explanation
Backchat
Drinking Games
Escape to the Movies
Escapecraft
Escapist Podcast
Feed Dump
GinxTV
Jimquisition
LoadingReadyRun
Mahalo
Meatbag and Co
Media Sandwich
Miracle of Sound
No Right Answer
Pro-Gamer Gauntlet
Reviews
Space Janitors
Tales from the Table
The Big Picture
The Escapist Presents
The Retro Show
Trailers
Unskippable
Zero Punctuation
Max Payne 3 Review
Company of Heroes 2
XCOM Enemy Unknown
Black Ops 2
Diablo 3 Review
TERA Review
Firefall Beta Preview
Starhawk Review
Critical Miss
Name Game
If there is one thing that can be relied on as a constant in gaming these days, it is that in terms of major releases, Summer is the slow period. Honestly, look back at what we've been forced to endure these past few months. Not exactly a bunch of GOTY candidates huh? With the exception of the release of probably the most disturbingly popular RTS game's sequel, there is almost nothing going on... until you look into the independent market. It seems while the big boys take their time to render their space marines and giant aliens for the Holiday rush, a bunch of smaller developers have tried to explore what can be done with technology today, and thus here I am reviewing two interesting specimens on the Indie market; namely Limbo and AAAaaaAAAaaaAAAaaaAAA!!!! A Reckless Disregard for Gravity. Let's start off with the XBLA exclusive.
The story of Limbo is...well, interesting. According to the game's explanation, you play as a boy named Tom, who has lost his sister and has stumbled into a mysterious forest in order to find her. That's about all you'll get out the game if you're looking for a story. The real story of Limbo is how you will explore and pretty much realize how messed up this place is.
The gameplay of Limbo boils down to a 2-D side-scrolling physics platformer. If you can imagine a level of Super Mario Bros. with Little Big Planet's physics then you're on the right path. Also, while you have that image in your head, change it to black and white. You'll go to the right, solve small physics puzzles and occasionally come across a few water hazards. So how is this different from the two games that I just mentioned? Well, the platforming is somewhere between deceptively simple and split-second precise, and if you fail these sections you get to see a little boy killed horrendously only to respawn a few feet away looking bewildered.
Which brings me to the selling point of Limbo, its atmosphere. The sounds in this game are very ambient and downright disturbing. Not in the means of actively messing with your head like the sounds in The Path, but more the road of establishing dread and uncertainty, like a dream you realize is slowly turning into a nightmare. The black and white art style might come off as art house pretentiousness at first, but when put into practice, makes for some pretty clever set ups of terror. Like realizing those branches you were climbing on were actually the legs of a giant monster. Another point in Limbo's favor is how it breaks the gaming convention of a level system. You always restart at the most recent puzzle or challenge but never once is there a "Level Complete!" message that pops up. You just keep going down the rabbit hole, dying and respawning the whole way.
In other words, basic gameplay elements aside, Limbo is what I like to see in an Indie game, exploring what can be done and what can be pushed. Good news is in the end, the experiment worked and gave us a moody disturbing platformer. Now if only they could lower the price from 1200 Microsoft points...
Next up, available on Steam for the low low price of $9.99 USD...
If you haven't guessed the premise of this game yet, let me be upfront about it, it's a BASE jumping game. In other words, you leap off a high point, free fall for a while, glide around, then land, preferrably with a parachute. Now that you've written this off as a sports game, let me blow your mind when I say it's actually pretty fun.
The story of Loud Scream while Falling is pretty much your standard Futurepunk affair. It's the future, corporations are dicks, we have flying houses and cars now, and instead of skateboarding, people jump while spraypainting graffiti and flipping off protesters to stick it to the man. Guess who you play as?
The good news when it comes to playing Reckless Disregard for Safety is that not only does the gameplay work but it also doesn't take itself too seriously. This is the antithesis to Limbo's moody dark trek down the woods. You play My Head May Go Splat for the shear thrill of beating an old high score while trying to time your landing just right before you turn into street jelly. Even the art style, while having some pretty funny posters, is reminiscent of those semi-futuristic looking arcade games of yesteryear. The kind of game that you would see come with a VR helmet and some knock-off power gloves, except it actually works this time.
At the same time, Guys Who Think They Can Fly is aware that repetition isn't really fun, so there is a surprisingly good difficulty curve that is covered up by a simple "you need X of currency to unlock" system. Meaning that by the time you unlock X amount of levels, you'll be introduced to new gameplay elements, such as the Flip-It Glove that allows you to flip off or give thumbs-ups to corresponding people, or telling you how to pull of unique tricks like the Flying Nun or Threading the Needle.
The game isn't perfect by any stretch, its attempts at humor sometimes fall flat and some of the levels can get obnoxiously hard around the end. But, Disregard for Gravity still keeps its charm whether you're playing it for the first time or the fifth. The rationale is the same for a Suda51 game, the flaws are irrelevent because its uniqueness makes up for it, and at ten American dollars there's not much to lose.
Bottom Line: I'd say if you have the opportunity and want to try something different or just want something to play, you could do a lot worse than these two games. Pick which one you think you would like and enjoy.