Lowglow

 
Developer: Rockodile
Steam Release: Dec 2015
Hours Played: 3.4
Similar To: Auditorium / Gunpowder / Ichi / Khaba / Micron
Rating: 4/5 Stars

GAMEPLAY

If you've ever marveled at the top snooker player of the day as he spectacularly uses three or four cushions to get out of a tight pickle then you''ll appreciate the premise behind Lowglow. For, by placing lines about the same size and shape of cotton buds in the path of a glowing ball, this is essentially what you're asked to do in this calm, zen-like puzzler. The ball in question is first released out of a firing mechanism and follows a path according to the laws of physics. In the first of five chapters, blue shapes adorn the screen for the ball to bounce off; in the second, pink shapes are used that destroy the ball if hit; while in the latter chapters, orange and green shapes are used that alter the gravitational pull of the ball. Using skill and judgement, your job is to guide the ball through a series of ricochets to its final resting place at the final portal.   

BALANCE & PACE

Limited to placing no more than three lines per level (which you place by holding and then releasing the left mouse button) you may stretch or delete a line by double-clicking it. To keep the experience varied, Rockodile introduces different mechanics as you go. For starters once you've tried levels involving the simple blue rebound blocks, strong currents of glowing blue embers are sprinkled in that force the ball off course causing you to think differently. Later, multiple portals are used that teleport the ball around the screen. This is then followed by levels with swirly black holes that further disrupt the ball's movement along with those that use two balls. Rest assured, although quite a few levels are over all too soon (some can take as little as a few seconds) there is plenty of variety throughout its 116 levels.

PRESENTATION & DESIGN 

With no time pressure to compete against and an ambient soundtrack of long lingering notes to keep you company, you'll have little to distract you save for the tinkling of the ball as it bounces along on its merry way. The shapes themselves have a neon-lit glow and give off a crystal-like quality, while the background is completely black to give that outer-space feel. The plinkety-plink of the ball as it strikes the shapes is the dominant, if only, sound-effect. Between stages you'll get a story told by god-like talking heads who look down upon you as if their faces are set in the stars. Although made to look grand and wise by their stature, to me, they just spoke the usual gibberish and I ended up skipping their time-wasting dialogue. 

PROGRESS SYSTEM

The game comes wrapped in five chapters represented by a blurry and rather dull map screen that lifts a fog-of-war as you play. Annoyingly, it doesn't quite fit on a full screen. The first four chapters of blue, pink, orange and green occupy quartered segments around the outside of the grey hub which is chapter five - and might remind Oblivion players of its capital city of Cyrodiil. Chapters 1-2 have four stages whereas Chapters 3-5 have five with each stage having three levels apart from the final stage of each chapter which has five. The completion of a stage awards the player with a golden line which can be stacked, stored and saved for later use - but you cannot use more than one per level. There are also bonus stages linked to each chapter with multiple bonus stages linked to Chapter five.

CONCLUSION

As I approach chapter five, with just a few levels requiring a peak at a walkthrough, I found Lowglow to be a pleasant breeze. Most levels can be done in a matter of minutes with some being over almost immediately after laying down the first line. Additionally, I didn't need any golden lines until Chapter 4. The majority of levels involve placing a line, watching where the trajectory of the ball takes it, adjusting the angle of the line ever-so-slightly, watching the path again, making another slight adjustment... and so on until getting it right. In other words: quick-paced trial and error. And while this process does not exactly make the game a classic, the fact that there are a huge range of multiple solutions to each problem certainly makes it worth a dabble.