Blocks That Matter

Developer: Swing Swing Submarine
Released: August 2011
Hours Played: 3.7
Similar To: About Love... / Escape Goat / Tetrobot & Co.
Rating: 2/5 Parsnips



GAMEPLAY
Classic platform puzzling action is the order of the day with BTM and it's your spacial awareness along with clear logical thinking that'll need to be fine-tuned here plus a large dose of patience. In short: collect blocks, redistribute them in 4-block configurations and get to that elusive exit portal. You control a type of washing machine with a large drill in its centre and are portalled in through a purple and blue squared entrance. It's this that you need to aim for to portal back out again. To get there you have to navigate through quite a simple maze but your path is hindered by cubes, long drops, dizzy heights and, later, large moving globules. Some cubes may be collected by either drilling at them or repeatedly head-butting them from underneath. An inventory of what you have collected is shown at the bottom. 

 
BALANCE & PACE
To use these blocks you must have collected at least four in total and then enter build mode. In build mode, which you enter at the click of a button, a green screen with a grid gets super-imposed onto the playing area and you place four (and four only) blocks that you then use to jump and step onto in order to reach those elusive heights. Another feature is added - the removal of 8 blocks in a row - which becomes vital as you progress. Although some levels do have you studying the screen at some length (areas are more then a screen's worth of space and you have to scroll around to see the whole picture), those eureka moments do come and it's very satisfying when it happens. Blocks are made up of different materials and you have to factor in this equation when figuring it out.


PRESENTATION & DESIGN
BTM is indie through and through. No fancy gimmicks or triple A values here; just your bog-standard menus with key functions helpfully shown around the edge. Mouse clicks are permitted as well as arrow keys. Options are few and clicking on Community takes you to the community made maps for the hardcore. Clicking Adventure mode brings up three squares: Underground Rescue for the main campaign; Bonus Levels for extra levels and Soundtracks to play unlockable avant-garde tunes. These have a largely repetitive quality but many are quite melodic with interesting speaker hopping shenanigens creeping in. Graphic-wise, the blocks, mazes, landscape and enemies are all rendered in a simple and clear design: sand blocks are yellow, wooded blocks are brown and iron blocks are grey etc. 

 
PROGRESS SYSTEM
On hitting Adventure Mode from the start screen you are taken to three rectangles. The left takes you to the main adventure, the centre is for the Bonus Levels and the right takes you to the unlockable Soundtracks. You can listen to the unlocked tunes but you can't select and activate one to be played while you're playing the game which is a shame. When you click on Underground Rescue, you are taken to the level-select screen which is a series of 42 cubes that you can scroll through in carousel-fashion. I have completed 17/40 levels yet it shows I have only finished 14% so I guess it takes hidden extras into account. This system works fine.

CONCLUSION
Blocks That Matter is a solid title that will certainly stretch your own lumpy grey matter. The build mode may be a mechanic not often seen and will throw a few players off but when you've figured it all out, it becomes more like an interesting toy. Some levels can start off so baffling you'll believe the creators have made a huge error in the design of the level - it can be that kind of game - but once you've thought it through (or had a peek at a walkthrough) it all becomes blindingly obvious, and you can sometimes really kick yourself. Thus far, at about half way through in the main campaign, I am having a blast. It is not overly-hard or impossibly tricky but it is challenging so for those who liked games such as Toki Tori, Professor Fizzwizzle or Puzzle Dimension it's probably worth looking into.