Game Quicky: In Retrospect (PC – Steam) ~ Automatic Mario

Steam store page

What if, in retrospect, Mario was supposed to be moving on his own? Well, that’s a perfect line to open this article about “In Retrospect”, a runner game developed by Paper Salamander about reflecting on the past. The developer send me a press code for this review, but don’t worry, you’ll get my unfiltered 100% honest opinion on this game. Also, this review is going to be rather short to avoid spoilers, especially because the game is roughly 2 hours long. But, is it worth your time, or should you skip this game outright? Well, let’s find out in this game quicky review while I invite you to leave a comment with your thoughts/opinions on this game and/or the content of this article in the comment section down below.

The good memories

It’s kind of difficult to talk about the story of this game. Especially since this game is a sort of “choose your own adventure” style of game. This game is a sort of self reflection game, without it being a forced self reflection game. The way how the story is handled in this game is wonderful.

The way how certain game mechanics like resetting a level is implemented into the story, it’s charming. As charming as the visuals. The pixel art is extremely well done and makes the game burst with personality.

This game is also excellent at teaching the ropes. Most new mechanics are taught in a sort of safe tutorial level just before the actual level. And, you can skip this tutorial level when you are playing through this game for a second time on another difficulty level.

Usually, I’m not too fond of runner games since I don’t have the best of reflexes when it comes to timing things with the music. Yet, I didn’t find this game too difficult. It was easily to learn the basics of this game and play through it. I played a bit on casual and normal and the balance in this game is really well done.

Besides the story, there are also challenges you can partake in. These are small bonus levels with a special gimmick. You have to reach the highest scores to get on the global leaderboards. Personally, this isn’t really my cup of tea, but it’s an extremely nice addition to the game and I find that it works really well.

The music for this game is pretty good. The tracks are right up my alley, and they really fit the atmosphere of this game like a glove. If the developer ever offers the soundtrack of this game as DLC, I’d buy it right away. Since I want to add the soundtrack to several of my playlists.

The gameplay of this game is really simple but fun. This game is an autorunner, which means your main concern is dodging the enemies and obstacles. During the level, you can pick up items. These items can restore your health. Depending on your answers to the questions you get in between the levels, one pick-up might be more beneficial than the others.

Also, the mechanics slightly change depending on the path you choose. But, if this sounds interesting, I’m going to leave that as a surprise for you to find out! I’m leaving out some mechanics of course, but each level has its own special gimmick or “thing” and I love it. It works wonders in such a short game and really feels like the developer placed a lot of passion in the level design.

The bad memories

There are some things I don’t think work that well. The first thing I want to talk about are the default controls. Overall, the controls are quite responsive, but I think the hover mechanic could have been implemented differently. Quite often I forgot that this game was an automatic runner and I had my hand on the right arrow. Now, when you jump and hold right arrow, you hover in place. This is something that frustrated me during my playthrough.

So, I had to get use to only press the space bar for jumping since this game is an autorunner. But, why is it then that in the options’ menu under controls we have a listing for “directional – arrow keys”. You can’t turn back in this game and only the right arrow is used for hovering. And the up arrow to activate switches, or down arrow when you are running on the ceiling. Which is never really explained in a tutorial in the version I played. But the fact that the down arrow is used for ground pounding is explained in a tutorial level.

Also, you can only choose between WASD & the arrow keys for this movement. This personally bums me out for two reasons. As an AZERTY user, I find it strange that ZQSD isn’t recognized by this game. Also, it would make more sense in my opinion if you were able to find the mechanics to your own keys, so the controls are easier to learn and master for everybody.

A minor complaint I have about the game is that the time you have to reply to questions is just a bit too fast. I barely have any time to read the four answers before I have to decide. On top of that, it’s not always too clear on what the question is. Personally, I think this could have been polished up a bit more.

A second minor complaint I have is that you don’t get a level select after beating the story. It would have been quite fun to be able to play a level with the gimmicks you enjoyed after finishing the story.

Overall, I barely found any bugs in this game… Apart from one. The achievement system is somewhat broken in the version I played. In v1.0.2, the achievements only show up after I have closed the game. You get a small text box instead of the actual achievement pop-up that Steam games usually gives. But, this might be my third minor complaint too… The reason I mention it here is that the amount of pop-ups is a bit ridiculous after you close the game since there are close to 100 achievements in this game.

The truth

Now, is this game worth your 4 bucks? In my honest opinion, if you enjoy casual runner games, yes. This game might be rather short, but it has some unique mechanics that make each level fresh and enjoyable to play.

The biggest issue in this game is with the arrow (or WASD) controls and not being able to rebind them to the keys you want. Apart from that, my complaints about this game are rather minor.

This game is perfect if you have to spend an afternoon, and you are waiting for a big game to download. It doesn’t overstay it’s welcome or get repetitive. This game is walking the fine line of too short and too long and I find it’s balancing perfectly.

Now that my article is writing, I think I’m going for another run since I want to finish the challenges and finally unlock the final challenge. If you are interested in autorunners or casual games, I think this game might be right up your alley. I’m glad that I was able to play this game and that the developer reached out to me. This game gets a personal recommendation from me.

And with that said, I have said everything I wanted to say about this game. I want to thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed reading this article as much as I enjoyed writing it. I hope to be able to welcome you in another article but until then, have a great rest of your day and take care!

Score: 80/100

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Game Music – My favorites #16: A Special One

More gaming music articles!

It’s time to talk about some more amazing tracks from games. Normally, I have a rule that I have to use the original music from the game. But in this article, I will also talk about some tracks that are related to games but aren’t in any game. So far example, a song with various quotes from a game. In any case, the rule that one track per game still applies. So, I hope you enjoy these tracks. And as per usual, feel free to write a comment with your opinion on the tracks, games and/or your opinion on the content of this article! 

(Hardstyle) Markove – Reawaken (Quotes from Bioshock Infinite)

Bioshock Infinite review

So, around the one-minute mark of this hardstyle track… You are greeted with a quote from Elizabeth from Bioshock Infinite. When I heard that quote, the memories of this game came flooding back to me.

Hardstyle is one of my favorite genres. I love melodic hardstyle. And honestly, when it’s combined with quotes or references from one of my favorite game series, then it’s even better.

When you like hardstyle or music with a lot of bass; you owe it yourself to check this track out!

(Trance) SkyMarshall Arts – Monkey Island (Quotes from the Monkey Island series)

Review of Escape from Monkey Island

First Impression of Tales From Monkey Island

SkyMarshall Arts is a DJ that makes a lot of different game-inspired music. He made songs about various games like Portal, DooM, Resident Evil and Monkey Island.

This song appeared on his “Nintendo Generation” album. On his own website, he explains the history of the album.

The song is really catchy and is quite fun to listen too. As a Monkey Island fan, it’s one of my favorite songs.

It’s a nice compilation of some great quotes from the games and the actual theme song.  Honestly, I have the impression that this could be used right at the end of a game in the series; when the credits are rolling.

(Original) Undertale – Hopes and Dreams

 So, I wanted to talk about Undertale for so long… So, here I go. The reason I’m not writing a review or a first impression for this game is because this game has been covered well enough.

Also, I haven’t finished the game yet. I know, shocking. But hey, it’s on my “to finish” list.

Undertale doesn’t need an introduction. It’s a very well known game. Maybe in the future, I’ll write an article about it. But for now, we have this amazing track from the game to listen to. Seriously, this track is very lively and one of my favorites in the game.

(Original) Rise Of The Tomb Raider – The Observatory

So, recently I have finished this game called “Rise Of The Tomb Raider” on PC. I wanted to finish this game sooner but there were just so many good games coming out in early 2016.

This game was an amazing sequel to the original Tomb Raider reboot from 2013. I’m very happy that this game finally came to PC since I had a blast playing this game.

I’m going to try and not talk too much about this game since I’m planning to write a review about this game.

But seriously, I played this game with some amazing headphones and that made the music even stronger. The atmosphere that this track brings while exploring tombs and various other locations is just amazing.

During this track, I stopped exploring and just moved the camera slowly around Lara. The visuals and the world design is pretty well done in this game and is a sight to behold. Thank you, Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix for this amazing adventure and the amazing music that came with it!

(Techno) Basshunter – DotA (Song about playing DotA)

Okay, time for a disclaimer. I haven’t played DotA, nor am I playing to play DotA. But why do I bring up this song?

Well, because this track from Basshunter introduced me to electronic music which is has been my favorite genre since.

This song made my 13-year-old mind interested in electronic music and got has its hooks in my since. So, yeah this song has some strong childhood memories for me. Now, I wonder… Which game(-related) track has some strong childhood memories for you while you have never played the game it’s about? Feel free to tell me in the comments.

Wrapping up

It’s time to wrap up this article. Something became quite clear to me. When I want to talk about a game without writing a separate article about it, I write about it in this series.

In any case, I hope you enjoyed reading this article as much as I enjoyed writing this one. I’m quite curious to see which tracks you guys & girls like.

Have a great rest of your day and I hope to be able to welcome you in another article. But until then, game on!

First Impressions: Another Code: R – A Journey into Lost Memories (Wii) ~ A mystery novel

Nintendo version of the website.

So, I have this Wii sitting in my room. I got my Wii after I graduated high school. Before that I played a countless amount on my Nintendo DS. On there I played Another Code from the amazing developer Cing. They went bankrupt and they are no more. But when I saw that this game had a sequel for on the Wii, I didn’t doubt for a second, I had to play this game. I started to play it three days ago, and I have trouble putting it down. Yup, that’s my first impression in extremely short for you. But this wouldn’t be a valid blog entry if I didn’t explain myself. Otherwise I will look as a fanboy of this game to you guys, which I kinda am. Visual novels always interested me and I love playing them. They always have a better story then other games and this game is no exception. Let me explain why this game is great and you all should give it a go. But, I’ll also explain some flaws with the system. 

The story.

This game is a sequel to the great Nintendo DS game Another Code, it’s named that way in Europe. The American is Trance Memory. I actually advise you to play the DS game first. The Wii game takes place two years after this game. The story of the DS game is very often referenced.

The familiar characters from the original DS game are exactly the same in this Wii entry. There are also a lot of new characters and you can easily get a reminder in the menu. Which is an awesome option. If you forgot which character was who, a reminder is there in game.

There is no voice acting. Which is a shame in my view. This game would have had big benefits from voice acting. Now it’s only the text displayed on the screen.

From what I saw of the story, it’s an enjoyable tale. It made me think back at the days I played the DS game. The main thing is again about memories. What I truly praise in this game is that on the end of each chapter, you get a small quiz to remind you what happened in the chapter and it really helps when you forgot or didn’t play the game in a while.

 But enough about the story, I’ll dive more into that in the full review. The gameplay mimics a lot from it’s DS game. The controls, you’ll need to get used to them, are actually quite unique and the mapping is great. Although it’s a pity that the detection of the Wii Remote seems a bit uneasy to use sometimes.

In this game you can’t really run everywhere you please. It isn’t a step back actually. This mechanic is set up in such a way that you can easily explore certain area’s and view them. Probably this made the developers have time for some great visuals.

As you guys might know, I’m not that difficult to please when it comes to graphics. But this game blew me away. The location of the game is bright and colorful, detailed and well made. It feels great with the realistic story and nothing feels out of place. It’s detailed enough that it draws you into the story easily.

Can’t put this down.

This game is also a puzzle game. And a great one. With some side quests like recycling, there is a lot of variety to the game. You can even choose how your character reacts to a situation. It adds some replay value to the game to see how it plays out if you react in another way.

I don’t know if there are different endings but I don’t assume there are. Otherwise I would be extremely impressed. Because in other games with different endings, this game is good in hiding it then.

One flaw in this game is how you can look back at the previous conversation. This is a very welcome feature but I haven’t seen a game get this right. I have to say, happy scrolling if you want to look for something.

There is no real tutorial. This is extremely welcome. Thanks to this you can explore and learn the game at it’s own pace. You don’t have to “learn” everything at the start of the game and you truly feel more free playing this game.

While exploring the area’s, things you can investigate blink in a yellow color. There is also a great indication on the screen to remind you. And pay attention, places you have explored, can also be of use later in the story. There are even various ways to control the game. Using the on screen buttons or the buttons on your controller, it both is fluent.

This game is easy and difficult. For new players to the genre, this can become quite a challenge in certain area’s. But, for advanced players in this genre or style of game, you can progress without getting really stuck anywhere.

Various story lines.

This game has various story lines running all at once. Thankfully, it’s never getting too much. When ever it’s too much too follow, a story line ends.

This game has also a very creative use of the buttons on your Wii remote. You’ll have to play the game to understand what I mean.

Before I close of this article, I want to mention the music. The music is pretty lighthearted. And it fits the tone of this game extremely well. You even have a music player in game to listen to the tracks or let them play as background music. And you can’t listen to tracks you haven’t heard in game yet.

That are most of my first impressions of this game. I’m nearly half way in this great game. The length is great from what I played till now. This seems like a game that will take you more then one day to complete. If you really want to enjoy it at it’s full potential. Whenever I finish this game, I’ll surely write a review for you guys. But until the next time, and happy gaming!