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Project "Backlog Eradication" - Clearin' out the pile o' shame

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Ceric:
Now the real question.  Could a Three Year old play it?

Killer_Man_Jaro:
Depends on the attention span of the 3 year old. If they can remember what the buttons do, then yeah, probably. They most likely wouldn't get the high scores and medals, but they could manage it.

Put it this way. At age 4, I played Super Mario World, a considerably harder platform game, and although it took a long, long time, I eventually conquered it.

Killer_Man_Jaro:
Braid

Status update: I've traversed all worlds up to and including world 6, and have all the puzzle pieces in worlds 2 and 3. It's now dawned on me that I will be unable to access the last world until I obtain all the remaining pieces, which makes me wonder why the game allowed me to skip past them. Although it might be nice that I can exit a section that I'm stuck on and return to it with a fresh perspective later, it fosters the impression that these puzzle pieces are, to some extent, optional.

My current feeling is that, for all its clever, evolving ideas, Braid would be better if it did a greater job of explaining things. To give the quick synopsis, Braid is a 2D puzzle platformer that uses a time rewind ability as its central mechanic. Each successive world puts a twist on this, which leads to elements like basing the flow of time on which direction you move in and creating a shadow of your movements. This is what's awesome about Braid. You'll spend a several levels learning one concept and applying it, then in the next world, there's a different set of rules to consider. It's a cool progression structure with a good amount of variety - throw in a 'painted' art style, and you've got the recipe for something really special. Right?

Well, only half right. In the hub area of every world, there are a bunch of text files that attempt to tell a story about the relationship between the main character and the princess he is trying to rescue. This in itself seems heavy-handed and unnecessary, but that's not where the problem lies. The problem lies in the fact that, where the narrative stuff is totally overdone, the explanation of important functions is severely underdone. Okay, you've told me that objects with a green hue are not affected by time reversal. How about mentioning that sparkling objects let me rewind without my character retracing his steps? That's just one of numerous key functions that aren't described well or at all. There are still certain things I don't understand, specifically regarding the inconsistency of which keys open which locks.

To put it simply, I wish the game didn't leave me to work out these mechanics by some fluke. It's especially a kick in the teeth that these go unexplained, while it felt the need to give me worthless paragraphs about my character's emotional wellbeing. Putting aside how overblown the story beats are, the rest of Braid has zero connection to all that.

Killer_Man_Jaro:
And Yet It Moves

Completed this on WiiWare, and did a sampling of the PC version, which came in the Humble Bundle.

As a fan of gravity manipulation and world orientation in my games, I dug And Yet It Moves. It doesn't have the really satisfying speed or twitch platforming of something like VVVVVV, the inaugural game in this backlog, but what it lacks in pace, it more than makes up for in smart environmental brainteasers and nuanced controls. The Wii version has a handful of control options to choose from, although I actually had the most fun with the Remote and Nunchuk scheme, as I found tilting the Remote was the most accurate for making very minute, subtle adjustments to the world.

It's unfortunate that the PC version is less enticing. Whereas the Wii game allows for complete freedom of rotation in any increment, the PC game is much more restrictive, with only 90 degree turns enabled. From my experience playing the first few levels that way, it just feels really clunky. There's one early puzzle where you have to use the mechanic to move falling water drops around platforms - this was a nice, easy one on the Wii, but on PC, with limited rotations, it was too cumbersome to be much fun.

So to anybody interested in downloading And Yet It Moves, go for WiiWare. Outside of the main mode, there are time trials to pursue, as well as a robust Achievement list. My personal favourite is the breakneck challenge of going from start to finish in a level without touching the ground.

Killer_Man_Jaro:
Trine

...and now I am eager to get my hands on Trine 2, coming later this year.

My closing words on Trine largely reflect what I said before. Throughout the later levels, it's still inventive with its environmental puzzles, adds more abilities and rewards vigilant play with a level-up system that gives worthwhile upgrades. The 2.5D visuals also continue to be bright, colourful and fantastical. Occasionally, there's an issue of perceiving depth in the sense that background details can look like they are part of the foreground you are playing on, but this rarely has a serious impact on the experience. Nope, Trine is totally worth tracking down if you like physics-based platforming of any kind.

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