I’m back with another edition of me blabbing about my attempt to clean up my PlayStation Plus backlog. You know the drill (assuming you read Volume 1). I take 10 minutes* to try out a game and let you know if it was destined to be deleted or if I made a push for platinum! Since one is so short, maybe today will be a three-fer.

 

---

 

The First Tower
Dungeon Defenders (PS3)

I’m not really sure what the point of the game is or even the overall type of game it is. You can choose from a few classes which supposedly are different somehow and probably have an effect on gameplay. I assume there is gameplay.

• What’s Defensible: After you choose a character you can customize it to some extent with a decent array of colors. You can do this with a crystal too. I think you might have to defend the crystal or something. Again, I’m uncertain.

 

• What’s Indefensible: I figured out how to swing my sword around. I was a knight. I got so bored with walking around that I never learned when or how enemies spawn. Nothing past the character creation seemed intuitive to me and worse, nothing seemed “fun.”

 

 

 

How far did I get: This was a very rapid delete.

Who is this for: I wanna say this is some sort of tower defense style game with maybe some RPG elements tossed in. Does that sound good to you? Maybe it’s for you.

 

---

 

 

Next up to take the baton
Bit.Trip Presents Runner 2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien (PS3)

This is a sidescrolling “running” game in which the only action I ever seemed to need to take was “jump.” Of course, with this genre the player cannot stop as the level is perpetually advancing. You play the part of a rather simply drawn hero who appears to like to collect stars.

• What sprints: The backstory is well written and intriguing. That sounds crazy since it’s a running game but it’s true. Controls are very responsive and the timing feels natural to jump. The graphics and color schemes were pretty awesome. There are checkpoints which make it so you don’t have to play the whole level again. On the other hand, you can jump over the checkpoints which raises the challenge level and possible score. The soundtrack is compelling for this game but even better than that, the stars are placed in such a way that as you collect them, the chime it makes goes with the song. It’s simple but beautiful.

 

• What crawls: Uh….can I say this? Nothing. The only possible barrier is if you don’t like this genre of game.

 

 

 

How far did I get: I played a couple levels and then did delete it. It was sacrificed because I don’t have much long term interest in this type of game and the sheer number of others I still need to get through. If I had this on my phone instead, it would still be a part of my life. If I run out of PS+ games it is a likely return candidate.

Who is this game for: If you like runners (Canabalt, Robot Unicorn Attack) you’ll really like this game. If you like casual games you can just pick up and go with, you will probably also like this game. Basically, anyone with some extra time will be all over this one.

 

---

 

 

Bonus review since I played a ton of games in my effort to clean up my PS3
Closure (PS3)

This is a 2D platform puzzler. The black and white color scheme enhances the primary game mechanic of using light to reveal the way. Your character looks like a cross between an Octopus and something from a Maurice Sendak book. It can carry a small light or adjust fixed lighting to solve puzzles.

• The illuminating: The premise is that if you can’t see it, it doesn’t exist. So if you take the light off of a wall for instance; it can’t stop you. Since it’s no longer there. However, take the light off the floor and you can’t stand on it. Overall it felt very creative. Puzzles were varied in tasks and they were always fair. There weren’t gimmicks with the mechanics of the game. Thought and effort are all I needed and not luck. The artwork is really nice. If it weren’t for a recent trend of minimal work (Knytt Underground and Limbo being two personal favorites) it would stand out more. Even with this trend it’s a nice looking game. The tutorial plays out like the “real game” and is engaging.

• The illumiNOTing: A few light fixtures I encountered were hard to point right where I wanted them too. The controls for these weren’t wonderful regarding sensitivity and sometimes directional control was wonky. I knew what I wanted to do, I just had a hard time doing it with precision. The game mechanics are unique (good thing) but this does mean you really need to pay close attention to master them (not really a bad thing but potentially frustrating in the short term).

 

 

How far did I get: I actually broke the 10 minute limit by a good margin with this game. I don’t remember how many puzzles I did but I wanna say close to a dozen, not including the tutorial. I didn’t delete this one and will be back.

Who is this game for: Anyone looking for a challenging puzzle rooted in some pretty unique concepts should give it a go. Even if you only kinda like puzzle games you should give it a go.