VVVVVV

 
Developer: Terry Cavanagh
Released: Sept 2010
Hours Played: 6.5
Similar To: 6180 The Moon / Gravity Cat / Mute Crimson+ / Osteya / Upside Down
Rating: 3/5 Parsnips

GAMEPLAY
Back in the good ol' days of Space Invaders and Pong, the concept of a video game was simple... with a few blips and bleep (and a whoosh if you were lucky) and with pixels the size of rice, you'd control a quadrilateral shape while dodging or hitting things. Terry Cavanagh has revisited those glory days by developing a retro platform-puzzler with old-school gameplay and a touch of old-school difficulty. You manoeuvre an overweight stick-man with the left and right arrow keys in an attempt to rescue lost crew-members trapped in some crazy dimension. You move from screen to screen while negotiating obstacles such as spikes, moving objects, conveyor-belts and, later, dangerous wrap-around mazes. Gravity in both directions plays a significant role and you manipulate this yourself by pressing the action key or the up and down arrows. 
 

BALANCE & PACE
The game consists of about 400 screens. They range from those that are traversable in a matter of seconds to those that'll have you cursing the screen like a madman. Sometimes it can take a while to work out what to do and once you've figured it out you'll still often mess up the execution so be prepared for a little frustration. Conveniently, there are scattered checkpoints galore meaning you'll never have the chore of having to complete large sections over and over again. You WILL however be involved in trying to negotiate a series of a few screens over and over again because some manoeuvres require pinpoint accuracy both in timing and using the gravity ability. There are also some tricky time-attack moments where the edge of the screen threatens to swallow you up if you don't act fast enough. Therefore memorising certain routes is useful. 
 

PRESENTATION & DESIGN

The 8-bit style is used throughout so it's huge pixels and no jaw-dropping graphics. The pay-off is that you get a smooth and stable game that will run on a potato. The music is chiptune and melodious enough to begin with but can begin to grate. Movement is punctuated by squishy synthesized notes. Like Bit.Trip Runner, an 8/16-bit retro style game equals an 8/16-bit style menu. Navigation through said menus is by keyboard only but are so inconsistent and counter-intuitive they can be as baffling as the game itself. True, you get some interesting options like the choice to play levels made by mods and to Unlock Play Modes (whatever they might be) but they were so inadequately explained I didn't bother AND once you clicked on each one and greyed them out you couldn't undo what you just did! 
 

PROGRESS SYSTEM
Progress comes in the form of slowly revealing the full map as you successfully complete screens. This gradually reveals itself in the form of 7 or 8 areas of varying size. As you complete the game, some areas seem to be unreachable and might have you wondering how on earth you get access to them. Fear ye not, for the power of the teleporter will be close at hand. All the different areas have their own kind of distinctive feel which does give the game that variety and character along with that essential special ingredient that makes you want to play on. As far as I'm aware, there are no stats or best times available but even if there were, the pleasure is surely in successfully completing the game and not in stressing over best times! For hardcore fans looking for that extra challenge you can collect those hard-to-get-at bonus orbs.

CONCLUSION

We all know that the most simple ideas can sometimes be the best. Well, the straightforward ideas behind this minimal platform-puzzler should certainly grip most gamers who choose to start off the first few screens of this particular journey. The great thing about VVVVVV is that if you do mess up and have to go back to the checkpoint, the process is instant, you're always in the action and never have to wait for load-screens. Although many have stated the game to be difficult, this does not and should not make it a deal-breaker. This game is a worthy challenge and it's a good kind of "difficult" in my opinion. A few doses of frustration will creep in on occasions but it's all the better for it. A proper gamer will overcome this with patience and perseverance and all screens can be satisfyingly dealt with and the game finished in about 5 hours.