Friendshape - Review

Meet Rectingle and Pi. One's a happy blue square. The other's an angry pink circle.

This may sound like the makings of a new family friendly sitcom, but it isn't. Instead, Friendshape is a puzzle-platformer by WuTangTan that is surprisingly challenging while remaining for the most part, simple. The gameplay reminds me of Chariot, only without any way to anchor your little shapes, which makes timing even more key. This is also where I tend to fail at platformers - timing my jumps has always been something that makes me anxious. Lucky for me, I excel at puzzles, which is balanced perfectly in this little gem.

While the difficulty progression doesn't feel quite even to me, there remains a good variety of difficulty among the levels. Overcoming the harder levels, even inelegantly, simply feels satisfying. As does beating one of the easier levels perfectly. It can be frustrating at times, yet it never feels like the game is kicking you while you're down.

CONCEPT: 2/5 - It feels connected to the theme. As are the shapes.
CONTROLS: 4/5 - Hard by yourself. Not the most intuitive (for solo play).
STORY: 1/5 - What story? The shapes have names. I'll give you a point for that.
GRAPHICS: 4/5 - Cute retro pixels that get the job done.
SOUND: 4/5 - The retro early midi music is pleasing to the ear, fits with the design, and is also satisfying. Didn't notice many SFX.
QUIRKINESS: 2/5 - This might've been a bit higher had I not seen Chariot first.
ENJOYABILITY: 4/5 - Probably more fun with a friend!

FINAL SCORE: 21 GOATS

Playing Friendshape, you really get the sense that the designer loves puzzles. If you also love puzzles, what can be more satisfying than that?

I HEART IKEA - Review

Hey there, fellow players!

It's GOOD FRIDAY. This springtime holiday may have religious connotations for some, but for many, this holiday means a day off for redecorating your home. What better way to spend your time this Easter than buying and assembling furniture? As Jonathan Coulton would say, "if you don't have a home you can buy one there!"

That's right, this week's game is I <3 IKEA by Axon Interactive and Friends. I know what you're thinking - a puzzle game where you have to assemble IKEA furniture with nothing but an allen key and your wits - but you're WRONG! Instead, this game is a side-scrolling runner in which you have to purchase your new furniture and eat Swedish meatballs without getting distracted by other fantastic items in the store. If you wind up purchasing extraneous bookshelves you'll end up over-budget and go broke.

Currently, the game features two different modes of play. In Coworker mode, you have a 10% discount. The level seems much shorter, so presumably you're trying to get all your shopping done on your break. In Student Mode, the level is longer, but you can't purchase any items over $100. Did I really notice that difference? No! But that didn't stop me from playing it anyway. As I played, it felt like "Student" mode was supposed to be hard mode, because of the restriction.

CONCEPT: 1/5 - I can't conceive of the link between the theme "After You!" and this game.

CONTROLS: 5/5 - They work easily enough, with multiple options.

STORY: 2/5 - Not much of a story here, so not much of a score.

GRAPHICS: 3/5 - A solid 3 because while the graphics look good, they're cut from IKEA's own online catalogue. (Way to get your art done quickly, Axon! Now that's jamming!)

SOUND: 3/5 - Good stock sounds provide a solid shopping experience, complete with the repetitive and catchy in-store musak.

QUIRKINESS: 5/5 - Where this game shines! I was attracted to this game at TOJam 9 last year by the sheer bizarreness of it's subject matter. Hoorah for the randomness of it!

ENJOYABILITY: 2.5/5 - This score would be higher if I didn't feel it were IMPOSSIBLE to beat! I suck at this game! I'm terrible at it! It's SO HARD.

FINAL SCORE: 21.5 GOATS

While this game scores high for it's uniqueness and creativity, it suffers for its sheer difficulty. It would help if I had IKEA's online catalogue memorized, but since I don't, and my reaction times are poor, I failed this game miserably. Other gamers, who are a pro at platformers and hand-eye-coordination, might fair better and get more enjoyment out of this quirky little gem. It would be improved by having small thumbnails of the items you need to collect on your shopping list, and a perhaps a slower speed as well. Even so, this game managed to draw my attention amidst a room full of games during the open house last year, and I recall having fond feelings for it then. After all, I <3 IKEA.

Thank you, Axon Interactive and Friends.

Regina Z Bearington's Sticky Situation - Review

On this day, April 2nd, the first day of Spring, I successfully sucked up sweet maple syrup through a swirly straw before sailing off the edge of a serious waterfall, the tsunami of syrup soaring off the edge after me.

It was glorious. And best of all, this time it only took me four attempts to beat it.

Regina Z Bearington's Sticky Situation by Team Electrified Fooling Machine is just that sort of game. It ties into TOJam 9's theme of "After You" quite literally, but in a unique way. Not only do you have to escape the titan tsunami of syrup, but you have to balance that with slurping as much of it as possible, without being swept up in the stickiness and suffocating. So instead of your usual button-mashing runner, you have to use your head in order to keep the queen of bears afloat.

When I first encountered this game at TOJam last year, I was hard-pressed to get to the end of the level, the syrup overtaking me literally at every turn. But I was determined, so I pressed on, with countless failures until finally I had the satisfaction of success. My note from last year states "sufficiently difficult but attainable". I feel that sums up the game fairly well. That little note was what kept me going earlier today, when poor Regina drowned the first three times.


CONCEPT: 5/5
CONTROLS: 4/5 - I wish there were another button with some kind of speed power up or something... Also a point is lost because 1 button isn't really "controls" but rather "control".
STORY: 3/5 - It would have been a 2, however the "facts" from a bear-centric "wiki" that appear upon game overs are creative and fun, and add to the flavour of this game.
ART: 5/5 - Last year, I said "4 or 5", and I'm feeling generous today because it's FINALLY WARM outside! Plus, it's super cute!
SOUND: 5/5 - Regina's frustrated sounds and burps are extremely cute, and warrant giggling. The theme music is almost like someone humming with a mouth full, too. Thematic!
QUIRKINESS: 2/5 - It's not the quirkiest of games.
ENJOYABILITY: 3.5/5 - It's the type of game that will frustrate you into playing until you beat it, if you're competitive like me. After you've done so, with only one level, you don't have much reason to keep playing except to surpass your highscore. It's fun, but not something to play for hours on end.

FINAL SCORE: 25.5 GOATS!

While navigating the winding river can be treacherous, it's also delicious. I had Regina drink 164L of syrup. See if you can beat me, and feel free to let the developers know what you think!

@atamize
@_arnulfo
@EmilyClaireAfan
@RainVillain

Prisoneers - Review

Imagine you've been incarcerated - for anything. Then imagine that you and your cellmate have planned an escape - and succeeded - except for one nagging detail: you and your cellmate are shackled together by a heavy chain at the neck, with proximity grenades attached to your collars that will make YOUR HEAD EXPLODE if the two of you get more than six feet apart from each other.

Welcome to Prisoneers, the game that Ottawawawawawawawa developped during TOJam 9 last year. It's an enjoyably difficult cooperative game that makes use of dollar-store sandals and an aluminum catering lid as the controller, which is originally what caught my eye on Twitter in the first place.

CONCEPT: 2/5 - Marginally related to the theme "After You!"
CONTROLS: 4.5/5 - Would have been better if not controlling sandals with hands. That was a bit awkward, though still fun.
STORY: 2.5/5 - I don't recall actually seeing any story in the game itself, however what I wrote above was inspired by the developers' explanation they gave me in person.
GRAPHICS: 3/5 - Blocky 3D figures that are reminiscent of first generation PSX games, and certain games for the Wii. (I was originally thinking of Muscle March, but those are more detailed graphics than I remembered.) However the simplicity holds a certain charm, and who really wants to see detailed gore when your head explodes... really? A great job for a weekend's work.
SOUND: 1/5 - Unfortunately, I don't recall any sound besides explosions, if any.
QUIRKINESS: 5/5 - This game gets full quirkiness points for the idea of the controller alone!
ENJOYABILITY: 4/5 - Difficult, but I could see it being beatable with practice and/or a better partner. Simply put, FUN.

FINAL SCORE: 22 GOATS

I've said it before and I'll say it again; Prisoneers is a brilliantly wacky, fun game. The controls are intuitive, as was the minimalistic title screen. It's the kind of game I'd hope to see in a theatre or Japanese arcade. Perfect for getting in arguments with your siblings over, then later succeeding and bonding over the realization of your mutual accomplishment. Prisoneers is not recommended for those faint of cooperation or patience. If you're a control freak, there is also the option to play it by yourself with your keyboard at home. Even then, it's a challenge. I've tried it.

Great job, Ottawawawawawawawawawa.




                          ...wa?



You can follow Jason Nuyens, one of the developers @generaltao.

A Short Word

Hey fellow players!

I just wanted to say a few things before I posted this week's review.

Firstly, please keep in mind that all games I review here are JAM games, most often made in 48 hours or less at TOJam*. I'm not expecting perfection, so you shouldn't either. Sometimes, we can both be pleasantly surprised when something is polished. Whenever possible, I will be linking to the game in it's Jam incarnation, and a more current version (if any).

I have a bit of an unconventional writing and reviewing style. Personally, I look for QUIRKINESS in a game, so that attribute will feature heavily in my reviews and is its own category to be rated. I feel that uniqueness is something to be celebrated, rather than mocked or looked down upon. I seek out and thrive upon the weird.

Also, I tend to be a very critical person, so some of my ratings may come off harsh, even when viewing the games through a 48 hour lens**.

Finally, this is all intended to be in good fun! Really, I'm just hoping this will make people more aware of what amazing independent developers, artists, musicians, and creators we have here in Toronto and Canada*** at large. This is something to be CELEBRATED!

So let's get out there and play and make more games!


(And don't be afraid to leave comments!)








*Unless otherwise stated.
**I'm apologizing in advance. Hopefully there won't be any issues.
***Do Americans or other international people participate in TOJam? Jim?****

****Hey, if Terry Pratchett can do it, so can I!*****

*****Footnote a footnote, that is. Sad thing about his passing, truly. Discworld books are great satirical works of fiction. Read them. Seriously.