tangysphere
BACKER
2022
Usually very relaxing but I found it weirdly frustrating at points, likely due to using a controller to play - there is a 'snap-to' function using the shoulder buttons but the cursor itself can be a bit haphazard.
Some of the puzzles can also feel a bit off as well, either due to the solution leaning too hard into trial and error or because they fall a bit too far into the nebulous idea of tidying - does adding stars to a constellation really work thematically for what is in reality a game about tidying a house up and your cat getting in the way?
Some of the puzzles can also feel a bit off as well, either due to the solution leaning too hard into trial and error or because they fall a bit too far into the nebulous idea of tidying - does adding stars to a constellation really work thematically for what is in reality a game about tidying a house up and your cat getting in the way?
2022
Enjoyed it to start with but the 'teach as you solve' didn't quite play out thanks to jumps in logic within puzzle sets and a few too many cases of overly complex rules.
I appreciate it trying to evoke The Witness (a great game with a shitty creator) but it being top down meant that the open area didn't live up to its potential, as you're unable to be guided by natural landmarks or structures to the best place to solve/learn the mechanics.
On the positive side, I did like the mansion location which acts as an exam of the rules you've learned combined with art pieces and the environment, and the art style itself never felt like a hindrance to legibility. It also sounds silly but the water sounds were really relaxing when you're standing next to a waterfall trying to work out how flowers or diamonds are meant to work.
Ended up completing 6 of the main sections with some optional puzzles - I might come back to this in the future but my attention span waned pretty fast.
I appreciate it trying to evoke The Witness (a great game with a shitty creator) but it being top down meant that the open area didn't live up to its potential, as you're unable to be guided by natural landmarks or structures to the best place to solve/learn the mechanics.
On the positive side, I did like the mansion location which acts as an exam of the rules you've learned combined with art pieces and the environment, and the art style itself never felt like a hindrance to legibility. It also sounds silly but the water sounds were really relaxing when you're standing next to a waterfall trying to work out how flowers or diamonds are meant to work.
Ended up completing 6 of the main sections with some optional puzzles - I might come back to this in the future but my attention span waned pretty fast.
2000
Not a bad game by any means but a step back from Type 4 in almost every aspect. Handling reverts to how it felt in the original Ridge Racer and we once again lose track variety in favour of all circuits being variations of the same base layout but it's the presentation that suffers the most and feels jarring when played out of time.
2011
Just a chill time. The missions are a nice little challenge but the best bit for me was just soaring around the island on my seaplane in freeplay. Would love to see this game in a higher resolution setting as the 3DS does hold you back a bit too much but still fun.
Only real downside was the pedaled hang glider, which just isn't different enough from your usual hang glider and requires too much tapping input for not a lot of difference.
Only real downside was the pedaled hang glider, which just isn't different enough from your usual hang glider and requires too much tapping input for not a lot of difference.
2024
A person's tolerance for Harold Halibut is going to depend on how much mileage they get out of slower games where inhabiting the space and conversations are the key focus, rather than anything resembling moment to moment gameplay.
I don't blame anyone who doesn't get on with that or think that any single approach is objectively better or worse, but I was drawn in by the game's beautiful handcrafted aesthetic and its hold on me never really faltered throughout the runtime. The ship you live on is full of memorable characters with their own unique idiosyncrasies, all helped along by a strong voice work - for Harold specifically there's a great balance between goofy ignorance and sentimentality, and that personality is probably one of the major factors that kept me going.
But I must emphasise again that this is a very slow game and there are quirks that come with that - sometimes your movement speed is slowed to a crawl as you'e made to follow another character, sometimes the dialogue goes on a little longer than expected, and this will put some people off. Thankfully for me, I used that time to take in the absolutely gorgeous world, animation and the small details dotted around all the locations you visit.
I don't blame anyone who doesn't get on with that or think that any single approach is objectively better or worse, but I was drawn in by the game's beautiful handcrafted aesthetic and its hold on me never really faltered throughout the runtime. The ship you live on is full of memorable characters with their own unique idiosyncrasies, all helped along by a strong voice work - for Harold specifically there's a great balance between goofy ignorance and sentimentality, and that personality is probably one of the major factors that kept me going.
But I must emphasise again that this is a very slow game and there are quirks that come with that - sometimes your movement speed is slowed to a crawl as you'e made to follow another character, sometimes the dialogue goes on a little longer than expected, and this will put some people off. Thankfully for me, I used that time to take in the absolutely gorgeous world, animation and the small details dotted around all the locations you visit.