Welcome to Monday Update, where my list of witty things to say is, at any rate, appearing to run dry! Merry Christmas Eve to ya’ll, if you’re reading this!
They Bleed Pixels – What do you get when you combine Super Meat Boy and Devil May Cry? Something like this, I imagine.
They Bleed Pixels strikes me as a weird game that not too many people will like. Not only does it have the weird, slippery physics of Super Meat Boy, but it also has attacks and a combo system similar to Devil May Cry. As well, the game ranks you for score at the end of the level based on TIME, which surely doesn’t mesh well with the game’s difficulty unless you’re a good memorizer. Still, it’s a unique experience with a Lovecraftian aesthetic that I happen to enjoy?
Why? Well, I feel as if SMB (the meat one) felt like something was missing. You have these really short stages that you can try over and over again, but the difficulty remains only in completing the stage once. After that much practice in a short time frame, it’s easy to go back and beat the whole game effortlessly. In TBP, that isn’t the case; you need to do good combos, collect stuff, and not die to save. Checkpoints are made by the player in huge levels, and you can’t even place them next to dangerous segments; this allows the designers to restrict how often you can place said checkpoints, and also make their game hugely difficult WITHOUT sacrificing stage length. Since you’re timed (scorewise, anyway), you WANT to complete it fast, and death is a blockade against a high score. So, too, are enemies placed in particularly tricky platforming spots. Getting big combos, jumping around like a maniac, and suceeding in not jumping into a giant razor blade’s quite satisfying.
Rather, you’ll want to kick enemies into said environmental obstacles. These increase your score multiplier AND remain incredibly satisfying as they explode in a shower of red pixels (hence the name of the game). Great combos involve launchers, air attacks, dash attacks, and creative use of your surroundings to bring enemies to a grisly end. I like that you need awareness; this felt like a missing element in SMB because the focus was so singular. Here, you need to multitask and juggle priorities to succeed. Some of the jumping segments, additionally, are just PUNISHING in their need for good reflexes and spatial judgment – the loose controls don’t help. That goes for combat, too – sometimes I would want to run forward, only to duck instead (it uses the analog stick, so getting that precise angle on it is a chore). Too many attacks are mapped onto a single button, and that can be detrimental in combat. As you know, simple control schemes in combat oriented action games are that way for a reason, but this tries to do too much with too little. I don’t like feeling as if the game’s controls work against me, and that’s frequently the case here.
Still, this is a seriously challenging, fun, and engaging indie platformer overall. It wasn’t quite as well-received as some others in the same vein, but at least it’s trying something different, and sometimes this is all that is required. Not for the faint of heart, though! Expect to die, try, and retry segments over and over again, and attempt to perfect your jumping/killing skills.
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing – Thank you for a new kart racing game, Sega!
I’ll admit that I’ve never played an Outrun game before. An arcade racer focused on drifting, it’s been heralded as one of the greatest arcade racing games ever, specifically because the very mechanic of drifting is so awesome and so fun just in itself. It’s crunchy, engaging, strategic, and course revolve around a singular excellent element that lifts the game to a whole new level.
Sumo Digital, the developer of Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (wow, that’s a mouthful) come from this pedigree. Not only did they do the Xbox port of Outrun 2 (considered to be arcade perfect), they made its console-exclusive sequel Outrun 2006. Clearly, they’re skilled at making these games. Hence, we have this new kart racer in the vein of Mario Kart with a focus on drifting. How do I like it?
I LOVE IT.
Drifting’s awesome, and when you add the common “kart racing” additions (cartoon characters, weapons, obstacles, creative course design, psychadelic craziness happening just about everywhere), you’ve got quite a game on your hands. Even when you get that perfect boost out of a corner (drifting longer gives you boost; the longer you hold it, the bigger the boost), you might get hit by an item or go too far into the next curve. There’s lots of dangers and a constant tension as befitting most great racing games. Making a mistake on the last leg of a perfect race never feels good, but the constant desire to memorize the tracks, get better, and eke out the best performance out of the mechanics possible brings it up to a new level of dedication.
However, it’s not all roses. The game requires skill, no doubt, but unlike Mario Kart it’s difficult to catch up once someone has the lead. Drifting leads to its own problem in that multiplayer, without everyone being familiar with the mechanics, might lead to a bout of one-sided domination by one party. That’s not fun. As much as I lament Mario Kart’s decisions to allow hilariously overpowered items that seek the 1st place car, there’s a good reason for that: the game is meant for fun with others. And Sumo Digital’s kart games isn’t designed with that same aesthetic in mind. Even the computer karts don’t go easy on you on Beginner; I can only imagine how hard Expert mode might be.
Still, that’s a problem with the audience with the game. The mechanics in themselves do a great job of making a kart racer for people who like kart racing. In that sense, it’s the best one that’s come out in years (even better than Mario Kart Wii). The only thing I don’t like is the characters. I mean, I just don’t have the attachment to Big the Cat that I do for Bowser, and maybe they stretch the suspension of disbelief a bit (Ryo from Shenmue, seriously?). It’s all rather ridiculous and in good fun, so whatever.
Honestly, I’m tempted to just go buy the sequel at this point to have even more fun (not sure if it’s improved or not, but if it’s even slightly similar I’ll take it).
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That’s it for Monday Update! Enjoy Christmas (and yeah, they’ll be a post up tomorrow, but rest assured I will not be here to answer questions or comments).
