[HEADING=1]'Splosion Man: Is It Worth $10?[/HEADING]
Earlier this year, the relatively new independent games developer Twisted Pixel became a household name with the release of it's first XBLA game, The Maw. Despite the game's MANY drawbacks, The Maw quickly reached critical acclaim as one of the best XBLA games ever created. Without knowing it, Twisted Pixel set a new standard for all XBLA games to come.
Now, kicking off this year's "Summer of Arcade" is 'Splosion Man, Twisted Pixel's brand new XBLA game. At a price of 800 MS points, let me answer the question that's on everyone's mind. Is this game worth it?
Keep in mind that I've only just downloaded the game; I haven't tried out the multiplayer either. This review is strictly based off of my first impressions of the game.
While I assume most of you already know the premise behind 'Splosion Man, I'll explain it again here. In the game, you play as 'Splosion Man, a failed laboratory experiment who is using his spontaneous combustion issues (that is, his "'splosions") to escape. It is an action platform game where you use your character's "'splosions" to launch yourself through the game's obstacles. It's set in the same universe as The Maw and it retains the game's quirky, cartoonist atmosphere.
The first thing I did when I played this game was compare it to The Maw. Unfortunately, to my great disdain, 'Splosion Man and The Maw are very similar, primarily in the game's fetishes, for The Maw, it was breaking boulders; in 'Splosion Man, it's breaking through panes of glass. Lots and lots of fucking glass.
I don't think I've played a SINGLE LEVEL of 'Splosion Man that didn't have me running through a pane of glass.
Ever since The Maw, I've approached Twisted Pixel's games with skepticism. In my eyes, their games are built more or less around creative premises, rather than on unique gameplay. It's for this very reason that everyone hated and loved The Maw at the same time; while people loved the charming concept, the game itself boiled down to mindless grind-fest only second to an MMORPG. Like I said earlier, 'Splosion Man has quite a few similarities with The Maw, but what really makes it worth your money is what it does differently.
Firstly, you will find no grind in 'Splosion Man. It's action packed from start to finish. There are always things to destroy or obstacles to overcome; in short, you would be hard pressed to find a single dull moment in the game. I mean, the game's called 'Splosion Man after all.
Secondly, and this is probably the area where 'Splosion Man separates itself from The Maw the most, the game is far more difficult. While first few levels were a breeze, once I reached level 5, things started getting interesting. While the game is beatable, there are plenty of areas that will test your sanity as you try to beat them. Luckily, the game's levels are riddled with well placed checkpoints; difficulty won't be an issue when you play the game.
Lastly, I just want to say that there are some moments in 'Splosion Man that...
Unfortunately, there are some things in 'Splosion Man worth complaining about.
One problem is the fact that you have to extremely precise in certain parts of the game. This proves difficult, because aiming 'splosion man's "'splosions" is very difficult. After he's launched himself, it's very hard to control him in the air. This leads to a lot of cheap deaths. The checkpoints make up for it on the most part, but in general, there is very little room for error in 'Splosion man.
Another problem is the boss fights, and some of the bigger enemies for that manner. The first boss in 'Splosion Man may be one of the most annoying bosses of all time. Rather than attack in a quick pattern like most bosses, he simply spams missiles at you. It gets annoying very quickly, and it isn't helped by the fact that he obnoxiously voices his love for missiles every time he does so. A lot of the bigger enemies also have similar tendencies, but in the end, you can't really expect much more.
The only other problem I could find in the game is one you can't really do anything about. It has to do with particle effects, specifically the fact that the game is plagued by them. There are sometimes when you won't be able to tell whether or not 'Splosion man has simply "'sploded" or has died; the animated effects for death and "'sploding" are very similar.
In the end, 'Splosion Man plays like one of those addicting flash games you play at work while your bass isn't looking. It may not be the best platformer in the world, but it's charm and gameplay make in stand out in the way The Maw should have.
Twisted Pixel are going to have to work hard to top this one.
[HEADING=2]Overall: 8/10[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Despite it's flaws, I can safely say that 'Splosion Man is a million times better than The Maw! It has a unique premise, addicting gameplay, and it's definitely worth $10.[/HEADING]
Earlier this year, the relatively new independent games developer Twisted Pixel became a household name with the release of it's first XBLA game, The Maw. Despite the game's MANY drawbacks, The Maw quickly reached critical acclaim as one of the best XBLA games ever created. Without knowing it, Twisted Pixel set a new standard for all XBLA games to come.
Now, kicking off this year's "Summer of Arcade" is 'Splosion Man, Twisted Pixel's brand new XBLA game. At a price of 800 MS points, let me answer the question that's on everyone's mind. Is this game worth it?
Yes. Yes it is.
Keep in mind that I've only just downloaded the game; I haven't tried out the multiplayer either. This review is strictly based off of my first impressions of the game.
The title screen for 'Splosion Man. Let the games begin.
------------------------------
While I assume most of you already know the premise behind 'Splosion Man, I'll explain it again here. In the game, you play as 'Splosion Man, a failed laboratory experiment who is using his spontaneous combustion issues (that is, his "'splosions") to escape. It is an action platform game where you use your character's "'splosions" to launch yourself through the game's obstacles. It's set in the same universe as The Maw and it retains the game's quirky, cartoonist atmosphere.
The first thing I did when I played this game was compare it to The Maw. Unfortunately, to my great disdain, 'Splosion Man and The Maw are very similar, primarily in the game's fetishes, for The Maw, it was breaking boulders; in 'Splosion Man, it's breaking through panes of glass. Lots and lots of fucking glass.
I don't think I've played a SINGLE LEVEL of 'Splosion Man that didn't have me running through a pane of glass.
Ever since The Maw, I've approached Twisted Pixel's games with skepticism. In my eyes, their games are built more or less around creative premises, rather than on unique gameplay. It's for this very reason that everyone hated and loved The Maw at the same time; while people loved the charming concept, the game itself boiled down to mindless grind-fest only second to an MMORPG. Like I said earlier, 'Splosion Man has quite a few similarities with The Maw, but what really makes it worth your money is what it does differently.
Panic-ridden scientists are to 'Sposion Man what zombies were to Dead Rising, unimportant NPCs that wander around aimlessly in the background and that turn into pieces of meat when you kill them.
------------------------------
Firstly, you will find no grind in 'Splosion Man. It's action packed from start to finish. There are always things to destroy or obstacles to overcome; in short, you would be hard pressed to find a single dull moment in the game. I mean, the game's called 'Splosion Man after all.
Secondly, and this is probably the area where 'Splosion Man separates itself from The Maw the most, the game is far more difficult. While first few levels were a breeze, once I reached level 5, things started getting interesting. While the game is beatable, there are plenty of areas that will test your sanity as you try to beat them. Luckily, the game's levels are riddled with well placed checkpoints; difficulty won't be an issue when you play the game.
Lastly, I just want to say that there are some moments in 'Splosion Man that...
...are just plain WEIRD. There's a gameplay element which forces you to use a fat scientist as a meat shield, and when you do, a bizarre A Capella song about donuts plays in the background. There are other strange elements in this game, but I don't want to spoil them for you (even in the spoiler.) All I'll say is that there's nothing wrong with them. They give the game a level of charm that only The Maw could have matched, and they did it without resorting to cuteness. On Twisted Pixel's part, that deserves some well earned applause.
Surprisingly enough, 'Splosion Man is FILLED with explosions. Who knew?
------------------------------
Unfortunately, there are some things in 'Splosion Man worth complaining about.
One problem is the fact that you have to extremely precise in certain parts of the game. This proves difficult, because aiming 'splosion man's "'splosions" is very difficult. After he's launched himself, it's very hard to control him in the air. This leads to a lot of cheap deaths. The checkpoints make up for it on the most part, but in general, there is very little room for error in 'Splosion man.
Another problem is the boss fights, and some of the bigger enemies for that manner. The first boss in 'Splosion Man may be one of the most annoying bosses of all time. Rather than attack in a quick pattern like most bosses, he simply spams missiles at you. It gets annoying very quickly, and it isn't helped by the fact that he obnoxiously voices his love for missiles every time he does so. A lot of the bigger enemies also have similar tendencies, but in the end, you can't really expect much more.
The only other problem I could find in the game is one you can't really do anything about. It has to do with particle effects, specifically the fact that the game is plagued by them. There are sometimes when you won't be able to tell whether or not 'Splosion man has simply "'sploded" or has died; the animated effects for death and "'sploding" are very similar.
There is no obstacle in 'Splosion Man that can't be solved by blowing yourself up. I wish life was like that.
------------------------------
In the end, 'Splosion Man plays like one of those addicting flash games you play at work while your bass isn't looking. It may not be the best platformer in the world, but it's charm and gameplay make in stand out in the way The Maw should have.
Twisted Pixel are going to have to work hard to top this one.
[HEADING=2]Overall: 8/10[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Despite it's flaws, I can safely say that 'Splosion Man is a million times better than The Maw! It has a unique premise, addicting gameplay, and it's definitely worth $10.[/HEADING]
