Saturday, January 4, 2014

Here we go again... [Disposabot Review]

          And again, and again, and again... Don't you think that all those corpses, which are dismissed as garbage and thrown into the nothingness in other games, could actually be useful? If you don't, you'll probably have a tough time playing Unept's game, Disposabot, since dying is actually your friend in the game. A friend you'll meet at least once a level, since there's no way you're passing these ones without a help of one or more of your past selves. 

(So wait, I need to- but how do I- Dammit.)

         So, the story: you're a little blue bull-brick-thingy minding its own business, then suddenly you get abducted by a UFO controlled by a red umm... something-or-another, who is revealed to be "Dr. Nemesis", the founder of a company which creates all those rooms you despise in other platformers. I guess you know where this is going by now.

          I guess retro graphics are now the trend in puzzle platformers. The graphics in this game are quite good, perfectly fitting the theme of the game. Some of us may even feel nostalgic while playing through the levels. The only problem is the advert in the bottom-left which just doesn't fit into the picture, but that isn't the developer's fault, so I won't count that.
          The audio also fits the retro theme, but due to its repetitiveness, it's good that the game has a mute button. The sound effects aren't really elaborate either, fading into the background music, but they are muted along with the music, so I can't really comment on those.
          The gameplay is simple, yet addictive. You have to get to the exit, meanwhile trying to avoid getting killed. However, most levels are impossible to do (see first picture)... well, until you realize that in this game, your corpses don't magically fall through platforms, and at times even float midair, making them a useful tool to block lasers, jump over landmines, or create ladders. This allows you to take a new look at levels that would otherwise be infuriatingly hard and do them in a snap. Don't relax just yet, though, because some levels are still really hard.


(...So I guess that clears it up.)

          In case you decide that after 21 rooms of dying multiple times, you want to exact revenge on Dr. Nemesis (For what exactly? He released you with no plot twists...), he generously offered the 5 keys to his lair to you. What a nice guy, right? Perhaps you shouldn't exact revenge on him after all... Oh wait, you have to go through 5 rooms that are much more difficult than the main levels to get them? Nevermind... 
          The game's concept is not all that new (I've seen a few games with the same premise), but the amount of uses the corpses have, along with the fact that corpses can now levitate in midair, makes this a fresh platformer piece that requires thinking forward a lot.
          Finally, the other things I noticed. The main game itself is not that hard (I finished it 3 times while writing this, to be honest), but the good news is that most levels can be done in more than one ways. As such, you can try getting a better score which can get you stumped on a level for hours on end. Also, when you beat the game, to avoid any inconsistency, all dialogs are replaced with a TV test card. (Spoiler?) Now that's what I call forward-thinking!

Ratings:

          Graphics: 4/5 (With simple, yet detailed graphics, this game proves that it doesn't need to be realistic to be pleasant.)
          Gameplay: 4/5 (A great little platformer game, only getting a minus point because it's main levels are mostly very easy.)
          Innovation: 5/5 (Its premise is uncommon, and the new ways of dying and employing your corpses make it a very innovative take on the platformer genre.)
          Audio: 3/5 (Its music, while fitting the theme perfectly, may get annoying after a few levels.)
          Other: 4/5 (The fact that you can optimise many levels, prolonging the otherwise a bit-too-short main gameplay, earns the game a bonus point.)

          Overall: 20/25, 4/5 (Both if you just want a bit of enjoyment after a long work/school day, or if you're chasing the all-time scores in games, this game is a refreshing piece of puzzle platforming that will get you entertained.)

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