I recently finished this Indie Puzzle Platformer and it would be absurd to think of this game as anything less than an amazing artistic achievement. This little indie platformer, created by Mike Bithell has brought out more emotion in me than some recent AAA titles. The narration, the mechanics, the soundtrack are all top notch.
In the game, you control multiple polygon shapes which represent out-of-control artificial intelligence entities inside a program. As you progress, you have to use each ones abilities to help each other to their designated exits of each level. The game narrative gives each shape a name and personality which helps distinguish each shape from each other, whether it be the eponymous Tomas, who you start off as, who has generally average abilities (he is a small rectangle, skinny, quick and can jump a relatively decent height) or the the stubborn Chris (short square, referred to as "fat" by the narrator, cannot jump high at all) and so on as you meet other shapes along the way. The game itself is only about 3 hours long but I was so immersed in the world that was created and the characters that developed before my eyes that for as short as it was, it made me wanting more and more. The end of each level was met with excitement of starting the next just to hear the next part of the story of these little blocks and their hardships and joys. I felt real emotion for these colored blocks, a real attachment to them, as if I was trapped in this environment alongside them all, wanting to help out the blocks who were portrayed as scared and wanting to stomp the blocks that were trying to sabotage the whole ordeal (there was not fighting involved in any way, only death by water and spikes that would send your block back to start the level over or to the last checkpoint, what I am referring to is the narrative that portrayed some blocks out to be curious or scared or stubborn or envious made me connect with each individual block in different ways.) By the end, I was not looking at the colored blocks as blocks, I was looking at them as personalities, as emotional entities that differed from each other in all sorts of ways.
A game about jumping colored blocks moving from level to level made me feel such and emotional connection that at the end of each level I didn't just want to, I NEEDED to move on to the next level to make sure they were alright. The environments and level design were crafted beautifully and really played a big role in what makes this game work the way it does. The levels are challenging but not to the point where you will ever feel the need to give up for a night or smash your controller out of frustration. It is a unique way to tell a great story in a relaxing setting. The narration is voiced by actor Danny Wallace who is outstanding. He has done work on the Assassin's Creed games and his work on Thomas Was Alone earned him an award at the British Academy Video Game Awards for the Best Performance category. The soundtrack was produced by David Housden which was stellar and the way it is "procedurally-generated" in game adds to the feel greatly.
For one man to craft a game that is so simple yet so emotionally complex, is amazing. All credit goes to Mike Bithell who created this game in his spare time and made me believe for a little while that I was playing through a game that was much much more than simply jumping blocks. Do yourself a favor and grab this game when you can, then sit back one night and relax as you get lost in the narrative.
http://www.thomaswasalone.com/
As for me, I will have a video posted soon (I know I keep saying this but I am really trying. My screen capture software needed some tweaking and I *fingers crossed* should be able to upload some gameplay videos soon). I picked up a lot from the Steam Summer Sale so far, so I will be doing some more reviews once I start making my way through some of the (relatively) newer games (Tomb Raider, Don't Starve, Faster Than Light and probably a bunch more)
Until next time
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