N+ is the new hotness on XBox Live Arcade, created by metanet software as a sequel to their flash game, N.
Lauded as a paragon of substance over style, it is a hit with game reviewers all over. It has a laughably small download size: 13MB.
The game prizes control and level design over fluff like graphics. The biggest problem with the game is that the control feels heavy, and the level design is tedious.
Obviously, they’re trying to make it feel “physics-y”, where the character has weight and momentum, but it only occasionally comes off that way. If you aren’t making a gloriously long leap after a run, the character just feels sluggish.
As to the level design, I have to admit that I was only playing the demo, and there are something like 200 levels in the full game. But they were often merely passable, not clever. When I see a long corridor of 40 deathtraps that I have jump one by one, stopping each time, I am not enjoying it. And when I die halfway down that hallway, I’m not only not buying the game, I’m deleting it.
N+, you’re just going to have to try a bit harder in the fun department.
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Pat’s Rating system:
- How much would I pay for the game? Maybe $3-5, if I’m bored.
- How many times would I replay it? Do I really have to finish it? It has people hooked, but I just can’t see myself trying the same level over and over again like I can with Puzzle Quest. Multiplayer is supposed to be fun, but that’s not enough justification.