Affordable Space Adventures! The trailer looked great! And having played it, the game is indeed great and left me with smiles.
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.
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.
