Impressions!

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Offline Boon

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Impressions!
« on: August 01, 2015, 21:06:16 »
Affordable Space Adventures! The trailer looked great! And having played it, the game is indeed great and left me with smiles. C)

The basic controls and mechanics are satisfying and unique, navigating the environment is fun, the atmosphere is thick and creative, the sound design is excellent, the visuals are pleasing and do th job very well and generally looked nice, the pacing was mostly pretty good, there wasn't enough repetition to bother me, and rarely was I able to predict what came next.
..., with the major exception of the last set of levels! Which were difficult for difficulty's sake, unengaging and less creative. Yeesh.

On the brighter side again: There were a lot of times I felt clever to get past obstacles, even though it was surely the intended solution. Setpieces and scenes were startling and striking. Each environment, even if it didn't seem like it would exist as a real place, felt like it belonged! Every combination of mechanics was used at some point. Dealing with incomprehensible artifacts was scary.  :ohnoes:

I did sometimes become frustrated trying to progress and being thwarted because of impossible-to-judge small movements and timings. Was I trying the wrong technique, or did I not execute it correctly? Especially when it was "solve this challenge but time everything perfectly with vague indicators and did I leave the oven on shutters open?" The latter is usually when the second screen became painful to use. Long-term temperature management is no fun. Despite that, I only quit out of frustration once, on level 36.

My gripes were when the game felt... Well, too gamey, I suppose. Less like a journey where I barely was scraping by, and more like "solve this laid-out challenge."
My most enjoyed times where when I was finding my way through a place that was clearly not meant for me.

As a sidenote, I got the impression that there isn't anything outside of the linear path. If there are secrets to find, I'll happily go back to look. Also I'm not sure I understand why the game puts you back to the last level you completed instead of the level you were on at the time when you start it up again. Maybe as a sort of recap, or it simply paced better that way?

So... Good job! I like it! Thank you for creating this particular experience. Whether Nifflas moves on to a new artform or keeps making games, I'll always have an ear out for what he's up to.  <3
Smacked in the face by nostalgia.

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Offline kilicool64

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Re: Impressions!
« Reply #1 on: November 04, 2017, 22:00:47 »
As I said in another topic, I finished the game a few days ago. Here are my thoughts.

From a gameplay perspective, the game is really fun. More than any other game I've heard of, this game really feels like it was made to take full advantage of the Wii U. Aside from the 3DS, no other system could handle something like this. Almost every single aspect of the gamepad is used in some way. This allows for really complicated core mechanics that nevertheless never feel overwhelming. And it truly encourages you to gain a perfect understanding of almost every single mechanic in order to find the best way to approach every situation. Furthermore, it gives the game a lot of variety. It never ceases to find new ways to utilize its mechanics.

I have mixed thoughts on the presentation, though. On the one hand, what little story there is is full of personality and utterly hilarious. And the outstanding integration of the Wii U's features makes the experience incredibly immersive. However, the visuals in many areas are a bit plain and unremarkable. And most of the game has fairly little in the way of ambience. I don't mind the game not having any music during gameplay. It can work with the right ambience. But I rarely noticed anything like that. There are some levels that both look and sound good, even great on a few occasions, but they only constitute about 20% of the experience. I've played the game three times and I still only remember most of the levels for their gameplay, not their atmosphere.

In terms of gameplay alone, I'd call this one of Nifflas' best games, but my issues with the atmosphere drag it down a bit. Still, I really enjoyed my time with it, and it saddens me that there will probably never be another game like it ever again. Unlike Nifflas and NapNok games, Nintendo failed to create many games that properly utilized the Wii U. Combined with their numerous other fuckups, it deservedly became one of their worst-selling consoles, prompting them to abandon most of its unique features with the Switch. It really is a shame the substantial paid DLC the game was going to receive never happened. Because there will probably never be a market for it ever again.

Some random thoughts about specific details, some of which are spoilers:

Spoiler: (click to show/hide)
« Last Edit: October 07, 2018, 02:35:47 by kilicool64 »