Due to a bad case of dimensional interference, Captain Viridian has been separated from his crew. Trapped in Dimension VVVVVV, he must find his fellow crewmates and discover the cause of the interference.
There was a time when games were confined by their hardware and found inspiration through imposed limitations. While Activision and Nintendo continue to expand their staff and resources, the indie gaming scene knows this history all too well. VVVVVV is the latest game by prolific indie designer Terry Cavanagh, it's also his first commercial and most successful.
The visual and play style feels like Mario[マリオ] trapped within Mega Man[ロックマン] levels on a Metroid[メトロイド] planet. The player controls are a simple as running and "jumping" (you actually flip the pull of gravity, but, you know, whatever). The real charm of the game comes through the amount of personality and ingenuity Cavanagh has managed to store into the restrained design. Each room has a clever subtitle, each area has its own memorable soundtrack, and each section has its own unique challenge.
90 minutes and 786 deaths later, I have finished VVVVVV. As much as my cramped fingers and brain-turned-mush are relieved, I'm a bit saddened by this. Like a rollercoaster that rattles you to the core and hurts your shoulder, I'm too thrilled by the experience to let the pain factor in just yet. VVVVVV is a burst of punk rock energy in game design. It takes elements of the things we love from Nintendo and Commodore 64 platformers, endlessly surprises with twists, and delivers each challenge at a rapid fire pace that leaves the player stuck in an endless loop of tension and gratification. If it weren't so brilliantly crafted, I would feel violated.
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one of the best games to come out of the indie boom of the early 2010s. a near-perfect concoction of puzzles, platforming and aesthetics; infinitely replayable and the soundtrack is one of the best i've heard.
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Captain Viridian and his crew teleport off their space-ship in an evacuation process. The five crew members end up scattered across dimension VVVVVV and it's up to the Captain to save them. The game has a very retro style as if it was a old Commodore 64 game; simple shapes and a handful of colours, accompanied by chip-tune music and sparse sound effects.
The game-play style is also simple. You can move left or right and the action button flips the gravity. It's an interesting mechanic which makes you approach the game in an entirely different manner. A flip will send him flying towards the ceiling and jumping again will send him down to the floor. So you will end up flicking your eyes up and down the screen and keeping your eye on moving objects in order to navigate the levels. You cannot reverse your flip mid-flight, but you can control your direction to navigate yourself to safety. There are plenty of spikes that often lace the ceiling and walls. A lot of the rooms have small areas you can land on with precisely timed jumps as well as mid-air control to land on them. Some sections can make you fall or fly through multiple screens, and obviously there are hazards scattered along the way. If you hit a spike or object, you die and start at the last checkpoint which are very generous. You have infinite lives, but you should expect a challenge throughout.
The areas leading up to your crew members are classed as levels and this is where the challenging areas are. The bits in between are simpler and your job is to explore and uncover the map. In the levels, there is usually some kind of gimmick to set them apart such as trampolines that reverse your direction, travelators to push you along a direction, spikes that slowly move up the screen, or use of screen wrapping (move off the left side to appear at the right).
You will need to explore to find the 20 Trinkets which are entirely optional, but unlock the extra modes such as Time Trials. These can also be extremely tricky to acquire, such as the infamous “Doing Things The Hard Way”. The Trinket is next to you but a block stands in your way. You cannot jump to get it, so you must travel up a few screens completely covered in spikes and winding paths, hit the platform, then navigate the same areas in reverse.
It was these difficult sections that made me think it was a platforming equivalent of Super Hexagon. You have the simple graphics, music that doesn't get annoying no matter how long you listen to it, and despite the quick deaths; it's somehow extremely addictive. No matter how many times you die, you always come back for more. So it's no surprise that it is made by the guy that made Super Hexagon.
It's a short game which should take 2.5-3 hours depending on how much you explore. You could speed run through the game at much shorter times than this too. Completing the Time Trials, trying to acquire all the Trinkets or replaying the game for a second time further increases the value you get from the game. It's a budget title at £3.99 so it is priced accordingly.
VVVVVV manages to do a lot with very little. The simple formula of exploration, tricky secrets, fast respawn and no lives limit makes the game a blast to play. It's very addictive and highly enjoyable as long as you have some patience to finish it. Chances are, you will laugh and try again rather than becoming infuriated.
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I have put 47 hours into this game. It takes me about 30-45 minutes to beat. You do the math.
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Incredible soundtrack and inspired hub design which intertwines with the regular levels in neat ways belies a shallow but frustrating puzzle game that grates as it goes on and on, with the challenge factor reliant on trial and error more than intuitive problem-solving.
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Another one of those ultra hard 2d platformers. I like the minimalistic style and comedy in it.
Unfortunatly im really bad at this sort of games so it doesnt take long before i become frustrated with it, even with the very lenient checkpoint system. I rescued 3 crew members so i guess i made it halfway, which is good enough for me.
I get really frustrated with these sort of games, which are close to trial and error for me. But i can see why some people would really enjoy it, as its pretty inventive in its challenges and level design.
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