INK

By: Robert Murphy

Platform gaming has been a genre that has stood the test of time over the years and even today people still can have a blast with the simple mechanics of these games. What is amazing however is how much the genre has evolved from simply making your way through various levels of difficulty by hopping on ledges, enemies or whatever the game has in store for you. INK is a game that proves that platformers still have some tricks up their sleeves by introducing something new and delightfully fun. Levels start out as a blank canvas and your little white square must make it's way to the rainbow colored goal in order to move forward. The trick is that until you start moving and splattering paint from your body you won't be able to see any of the obstacles that lay before you. By the end of most levels you are left with a ink splattered tapestry of your own creation.

At first glance things seemed a bit perplexing as you starred at the empty black void that most levels begin as but by the end you have an entire hidden world laid out before your eyes, a world that you brought to life. There is no way of knowing just what awaits you in each level of the game until you use your little white cubes abilities to unravel it. By moving in any direction you will leave a Gary the Snail style trail of colors that seep into the structures around you to let you see the shape of the structures you find yourself on. You also have a jump and a double jump which splatters paint from your wobbly body in all different directions. This is the most important feature as it sends paint flying everywhere to allow you to gauge what could possibly be waiting to explode your entire body into tiny paint blobs. Yes, even death has it's benefits, although the games achievements mock you slightly for dying, death also gives you insight into what dangers each level features by spreading paint in all directions just as your double jump does. 

It isn't half as frightening as it sounds to go through the levels with no idea what may be waiting for you as you will begin to gain expectations for the level layouts the more you play along with your Super Meat Boy-esque character. INK is not without it's tricks and various ideas though as the levels begin to evolve the more you begin to get use to your environment. Spikes, enemy paint beings and other obstacles such as moving platforms shake up the dynamic and ratchet up the puzzle solving element. I cannot tell you how freaked out I was when I jumped into a moving platform level where an enemy was shooting triangle blasts at me, all the while I never knew where my next safe platform would be. It can be quite panic inducing to be honest but that's what makes platformers so much fun to begin with, the sweat and relief you get from a particularly difficult level layout.

That being said, INK does have it's fair share of iffy controls that make death feel a little undeserved. Patience is key with these types of games but even the most seasoned gamer will get fed up with a level once they've tried it over and over again and so they begin to rush into levels hoping to get through them quicker. This is a problem for this game though as countless times I have rushed into a level and had my double jump already go off and I end up falling of the ledge to an immediate death. This can be chocked up to my own impatience but the games controls do feel quite slidey when often times you need precise movements for a platforming game. Use of a controller was something that I found to help with the controls and my repeated sliding movements but they still occurred from time to time and that did not help my rage meter in the least.

Despite this issue, INK is a delightfully creative game that has made it's way onto my Steam shelf. There is something deeply enjoyable about starting each new level, you have a completely blank canvas before you and you bring it to life by jumping, sliding and exploding your way through it. The movements may take some getting use to but this simple and innovative game capture my imagination from start to finish. 

Good:

- Innovative platform game

- Creating your very own unique levels through appealing color pallets

- Unique levels to explore and create with your tiny square paint brush

Bad:

- Character movement could use some work, movements tend to be very slidey

Scully Rating: 8.7 out of 10

Rayman Legends

By: Robert Murphy

Rayman was never at the forefront for most of the games that I played when I was younger and when I finally did play my first title for the series I wasn't too blown away by it. Rayman Legends though proved to take all my previous expectations and notions about the game and throw them right out the window. Stages throughout this plucky platformer are rich with color and design and each bringing its own unique element to the table. There is also wonderful soundtracks and quick paced momentum that propels you forward along the massive amount of content the game has available. And while it may be a bit bumpy at the start you'll find yourself soaring across each map with ease and searching every corner for those imprisoned Teensies. 

The story for Rayman Legends is a straight forward one to say the least. You are awoken to find that monsters have once again terrorized the land and rounded up all the Teensies which are tiny blue creatures with monster noses. This is due to some evil wizard Teensies and some nightmarish creatures that are helping them. You must make your way through the different levels as any one of the playable characters and releases them from their tiny cages hidden throughout the levels while collecting Lums. Sounds pretty easy and it is but it is also insanely fun. There are also a variety of challenges to compete in over online leaderboards, paintings to collect that will unlock more levels, a competitive soccer game type and plenty of other things to keep you busy. 

I was thoroughly impressed with the massive amount of content available for title as I never expected a Rayman game to delve into so much material. When you first start out things can be a little daunting as the game doesn't do much in terms of navigating around. As I started to do this or that in the levels, I began to get notification of things unlocking and going to find out what you have will send you to a hub world. I had no idea was the main game from here as I unlocked different paintings levels and other things but you will quickly learn how to navigate around once the initial content load wares off and you become just as impressed with how much of a game you have laid out before you. 

Once you get back to the stages you'll begin to notice all the fun details that went into this game. Most levels start out fairly slow and simple and you go at your own pace looking for the Teensies hidden away but things are ever changing and unique. As levels begin to get more difficult you'll find yourself trying to out run blazing flames from behind you while testing your reflexes to save yourself and the Teensies in the level. There are also quirky levels like the ones in Fiesta de los Muertos where there is a day of the dead style group of enemies as well as a food themed environment. You can chop your way through cake puzzles and shrink yourself down to travel through a tiny hole in the side of an apple. There are other themed levels such as ones with giant instruments for platforms that play notes as you run along them. Each stage and level has something you will undoubtedly enjoy about it whether its the themes, enemies, music or art work, its all very delightful.

As for you and your friends, up to four people (five if on the Wii U and PS Vita) can join in on the action across the screen. There is a variety of unlockable character costumes that come with the set group to choose from. Once you have all your friends together it is all out chaos though as you all fight to get to the end and to collect the Teensies. Sure, you are working together and no matter who gets to the secrets you all reap the benefits but no matter what I'm sure there will be competition abound for anyone. 

One of the newer attractions to Rayman Legends is a funny green frog named Murfy, no relation to me. Murfy is an AI controlled character that appears in certain levels to help you out with particular challenges. He can smack or tickle enemies for you, lower obstacles, create platforms and a number of other helpful things for players as he moves independently along with you through the stage searching for items he can manipulate. Murfy will do this in all but the Wii U and PS Vita versions of the game where he can be played by another player. His character is a sort of interesting addition to the game and one that I have mixed feelings about since his addition often leads to a slow down for that particular level. Players will have to wait and see what particular thing Murfy needs to do in the level ahead instead of you being free to move through a level as you wish. Its not a tremendous bother or inconvenience but in terms of whether or not he is necessary, I don't really think he is.

Despite this minor short sight and a few others, Rayman Legends provides more than enough to keep players coming back for more. I still have yet to see the end of the content present as I've only collected 500 of the 700 available Teensies strewn throughout levels. Weekly challenges and new maps popping up all over the already played portions of the game also prove to keep me busy and makes for a never ending mouthful of playable content to enjoy. Now if you will excuse me I'm off to find the rest of those little blue buggers.

Good:

- Massive amount of content to explore

- Fun and entising levels 

- Interesting soundtrack that compliments the games enjoyable environments

Bad:

- Brief but some initial confusment

- Murfy is interesting but mostly a unneeded addition

Scully Rating: 9.2 out of 10

Never Alone (Kisima Ingitchuna)

By: Robert Murphy

Ever since I first picked up the charming little game, Child of Light, it has been an effort of mine to find other titles of it's like that carry the same atmosphere to it and this brought me to Never Alone. I had underestimated the depth that the game would bring in such a short time, the alternate title for the game is Kisima Ingitchuna which is native Iñupiaq interpretation for the game. Yes, this game was in partnership developed with much support from Alaskan Natives to tell the story and open players to an unknown world and tale from their history. Every detail, down to the narration has served to engross you into this piece of folklore as you play a young native girl named Nuna and her spunky partner, an arctic lupine named Fox. The two of you set out to discover the origin of the never ending blizzards that are plaguing her village and causing pain and suffering for her people.

The gameplay is fairly straight forward as a platforming genre, Nuna and Fox will work together in order to make it through different obstacle along the difficult frozen wasteland. Switching between the two to face the icy terrain, Nuna and Fox complement one another, Fox has the ability to jump higher and climb walls. He also has a more mysterious ability to summon the aid of ethereal spirits that help him and Nuna reach higher points. Nuna though is no slouch and brings her own skills to the party, she can push or pull objects and also wields a bolo type tool that can break weak icy obstacles in their way. Now you don't have to switch between the two if you have a friend to play with, Never Alone offers a co-op system for another person to work alongside you but I spent this journey going alone and it went smoothly. 

Now while all of this won't prove to be a daunting task for you, you will find it hard to notice the simplicity while the charm of the story is pulling you in. I could not help but take the time to listen whenever the narration chimed in with the elder Alaskan Native speaker telling you the tale as it unfolds before you. Never Alone was a game that clearly had the notion to create something with a love for the Alaskan Native people and wanting to have this story brought to life the way it was meant to. The game is the perfect example for the time old gamer saying that a good story makes the game with it's authentic feel and flow to it. Even though you may not understand the Iñupiaq language or culture, you will still feel the gravity of the situations you are in and story that is being laid in front of you. 

But, despite the charming nature of the game, there were some flaws to the gameplay that came up while I was playing. One point in particular when I had to use Fox to summon an ethereal spirit to help Nuna get to a high point, Fox would either fall off of the edge or the spirit would go on without Nuna and I was unable to progress without resetting the checkpoint. Other issues like characters touching surfaces that aren't really there and funky glitches came up from time to time that caused me levels of annoyance. There is also the delay to which you are told about an oncoming threat and how you must handle the situation, it's not like a puzzle where you must sit and find the solution, no this is a death sequence you will have to endure while you figure out the way to escape the danger that threatens you. 

Never Alone, may have had it's issues but it was still an enjoyable little platformer. I appreciated all the hard work that the developers went to ingratiate you with the Alaskan Native story and the natives who offered this great piece of folklore to the game as well. The atmosphere is also a perfect representation to the tough and harsh terrains of Alaska, I have never been there but you do not have to go there to know how dangerous it can be living in the cold, blizzards and isolation of it all. If some of the more basic issues were to be fixed, Never Alone would have been a perfect ride for me but it was still overall a very unique story told from real Iñupiaq people. 

Good:

- The authentic representation of the Alaskan Native story

- A charming platformer 

- Great atmosphere and art work present throughout the game

Bad:

- Technical issues such as character glitches and others

- Partner issues when switching between Nuna and Fox 

Scully Rating: 7.0 out of 10