'PixelJunk Eden,' 'Braid' prove quality of downloadable games
Downloadable games have become more and more popular, and two recent games - ''PixelJunk Eden'' and ''Braid'' - have garnered nearly as much attention as full-fledged games, a sign of the format's growing importance.
''PixelJunk Eden'' is the third in the ''PixelJunk'' series on the PlayStation 3. The three ''PixelJunk'' games are related in name only; each is completely different.
''Eden'' is a flowery, musical experience. And I mean flowery literally. The object of the game is to take control of a small creature called a grimp, who travels around various gardens. With a double-tap of a button, the grimp can leap through the air. With a single button press, he swings in a circle on a thin thread. As he swings, he collects pollen and defeats monsters called pollen prowlers.
The pollen fills up nearby circles, which represent seeds. Once they have enough pollen, the grimp can land on them and cause a new plant to sprout.
The plants are drawn in thick, colorful lines - sometimes moving and sometimes static - and the music often has a throbbing, techno feel.
The goal is to grow plants the grimp can use to reach bright objects called spectra high up in the garden. Each time the grimp collects a spectra, the garden's colors and music change, creating a whole new feel.
Of course, all this isn't without a catch: the grimp must constantly refill an energy bar with another type of pollen he can collect. If his bar runs out, it's game over. Some of the pollen prowlers also are harder to kill and can impede the grimp's progress by knocking him around.
''Eden'' has 10 gardens in which to collect all the spectra and sprout all the seeds. After about garden No. 5, the game gets noticeably harder, and many players will need multiple tries to get to all the spectra.
Friends can help, though, as ''Eden'' supports up to three-player co-op on one system. In co-op, players collectively gather pollen and can piggyback off each other to make higher leaps.
If you're into it, you can also upload video of your ''Eden'' exploits directly to YouTube.
I enjoyed ''Eden'' a lot. Despite its sometimes daunting difficulty, I found it to be a relaxing experience, akin to that I found with ''flOw,'' a previous PlayStation Network release.
There's really no question about this one: If you own a PS3, you should buy ''PixelJunk Eden.''
Over on the Xbox 360, Xbox Live Arcade has the time-bending puzzler ''Braid.''
''Braid'' is interesting, to say the least. I haven't come across a game this formidable in a while. It's inventive, visually creative - and hair-pullingly frustrating. At times, the game made me feel downright stupid.
''Braid'' is drawn as if it were painted, which is a cool effect. The main character, Tim, has the power to manipulate time. As he travels through a series of worlds searching for a princess, he must use his time-bending abilities to collect puzzle pieces (once a world's puzzle is fully put together, that world is completed).
Each world has different ways time can be manipulated. In some, glowing green objects are untouched by reversing time. So, for example, if you pull a green lever, then reverse time, that lever stays pulled. In other worlds, rewinding time creates a shadow of Tim that repeats his moves since his previous rewind. Purple glowing items can be interacted with by the shadow, allowing for Tim to be in multiple places at once.
This gets tricky, and the solutions aren't always obvious. As much as I enjoyed the game and its intriguing mechanics, I quickly began to doubt my intelligence.
A tip to save your sanity: Some levels can't be fully solved until later levels are completed. If you simply can't figure something out, move on. Each level's exit is always accessible, regardless of how much of the puzzle you've solved.
''Braid'' is not for the impatient. The puzzles are more difficult than you'd expect and will require more than just precursory thought. It also costs a bit more than most Arcade games.
''Braid'' is well worth it if you actually put in the effort to think through the puzzles, and it lends itself to a tremendous sense of achievement for going it alone. Using walkthroughs will only cheapen the experience.
If you like your gameplay easy, don't even try it.
Reach Aimee Green at (402) 473-7326 or Aimee.Green@lee.net.
PIXELJUNK EDEN
Sony, for PlayStation 3
Rated: Everyone
Cost: $9.99 (via PlayStation Store)
Score: 8.5/10
BRAID
Microsoft, for Xbox 360
Rated: Everyone 10+
Cost: $15 (1,200 points on Xbox Live Arcade)
Score: 8.5/10
Scores based on an evaluation of gameplay (4 points), visuals (2), sound (2) and replayability/value (2)