Limbo (Xbox 360)

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INeedFruit
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Limbo (Xbox 360)

Post by INeedFruit »

Limbo
Xbox Live Arcade

The first game by Denmark based studio Playdead Is stunning to look at, to play and to finish. Limbo is a 2D puzzler but it may come as a shock to find that it isn't that puzzling. From simple 'push a crate here' to full-blown Physics (push a crate here, reverse gravity and turn the electric on) the puzzles are rarely repeated and seem logical and fun to solve. It's not until near end where you stop and think, "crap, I'm stuck" and that time will come sooner than most will hope for.

Limbo's beginning is probably the highlight of the entire game however as the forest in which you wake is the most interesting and atmospheric setting in the whole game. Tree's and strange buildings become visible through the mist; strange tribes and creatures try to foil you at every turn. Some RPG's would struggle to create such sense of place within such a short amount of time.

The style is moody, using German Expressionist styles in glorious HD to paint an Interesting and Immersive world. Despite being almost abstract the world in which you play in is completely released and believable. There are three ‘levels’ that blend seamlessly into one another, and it really feels like you’re on a journey. The levels do not increase in difficulty in a conventional way (there are not more bad guys or less life) the puzzles get more intricate and greater in length.

The boy you control, despite being void of all detail is well animated and believable. He is a lonely silhouette with two piercing, blinking white eyes. His movements are incredibly childlike, shifting his weight whilst running down hill and raising his arms to potential movable objects. This is a great design aspect as it lets the player know what is interactive and what is not. You want to take care of him, right up to the point where is head is brutally departed from his body by a bear-trap. Do you feel sorry for the decapitated boy? No. Because the act of his death will normally show you a solution to the problem laid before you! That and the fact the check pointing in this game makes you hardly ever shout out "What, I have to do THAT again"

The sound design, like its monochrome palate is minimalist, with only a few powerful discords to punctuate certain sights or events. However the sound effects used are brilliant, and add real depth to the beautifully crafted, yet morbid world. Not that the morbidity will stop you from laughing at the recently deiced boy and the various parts of him falling away from your mistimed jump.

Some of the puzzles in Limbo are immediately apparent but take platforming skill to solve. Factors such as trajectory, timing and speed are used to great effect setting the game apart from such titles 'Professor Layton And The Curious Village'. Due to this platforming element of this game the player is drawn into the game rather than feeling stranded on the other side of the screen as some other popular point and click puzzlers can do.

It’s hard to write a review about a game you’re in love with, so I’ll stop here before the love juices flow. Lets just end on:
If I were trapped in Limbo I wouldn't mind one bit, apart from the constant death and mind maggots.
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Tru
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Post by Tru »

Great review! I've only played the demo myself, but I really loved the atmosphere of the game, the use of ambient sound effects rather than actual music really added to it and works so well. Such a great style too.

I'm not sure if I would buy it though; does it have much in the way of replayability? Once it's complete, I'm not sure if I would go through it again.
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Post by INeedFruit »

Replayability is something of an issue but the game's life span is lengthened slightly by the use of Achievements which instead of being 'kill 100 zombies' are cryptic clue's within themselves such as 'just because you see a leaver, doesn't mean you should pull it' but your right it is a short game with little or no replay value, but for £10 I would argue that its well worth the time and money.
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Post by Tru »

Well that's true. I still haven't completed Braid yet, but I would say that is worth it too ^_^
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Post by Killer French Bread »

I downloaded the demo but it was in black and white, had no music and the gameplay felt like it was in slow motion. Atmosphere? It felt more like a cheap trick, like the way my brother takes photos in black and white and at a jaunty angle. Big whoopy waa waa.

I admit I may have missed the point.
Tic Tac, sir?
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Post by Tru »

Perhaps you don't agree with the whole 'games as art' thing either, bread? :P
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INeedFruit
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Post by INeedFruit »

Killer French Bread wrote:I downloaded the demo but it was in black and white, had no music and the gameplay felt like it was in slow motion. Atmosphere? It felt more like a cheap trick, like the way my brother takes photos in black and white and at a jaunty angle. Big whoopy waa waa.

I admit I may have missed the point.
you have essentially made me cry.
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Post by Rayne »

Killer French Bread wrote:I downloaded the demo but it was in black and white, had no music and the gameplay felt like it was in slow motion. Atmosphere? It felt more like a cheap trick, like the way my brother takes photos in black and white and at a jaunty angle. Big whoopy waa waa.

I admit I may have missed the point.
Totally agree with this. Limbo uses it's 'artistic merits' to disguise the fact it's a crap platformer that lasts about 2 hours, and they charge a tenner for it. Mental
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Post by INeedFruit »

I couldn't disagree more. Limbo use's its platform elements to get the player from one excellently designed puzzle to the next. It can't be viewed as a platformer otherwise it would be a crap game, it is most defiantly a puzzler.
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Post by Rayne »

It's not a clever puzzler, it's a trial and error puzzler. You get to the end by dying a zillion times on each puzzle.

To be honest it's not terrible, I'm annoyed that it's getting so much praise when it's so not worth the money.

400 Yes, 800 at a push, 1200? Blah
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