Score: 8
"Breath-taking, yet... scream inducing."
date: August 20, 2009
[WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW]
Outstanding! Both McMillen and Himsi have collaborated tech with art to create a truly fascinating and (in our opinion) one of the most innovative and beautiful flash games we've ever seen!
GRAPHIC: While based on simply part-connect-part images and rather simple environments/backgrounds, the artistic style of all images and the plotline story-book pictures is amazingly surreal in a childish-for-adult way. i found it to be truly inspiring work, and do hope to see future expansions of this. Individual expressions depending on object interaction, evironment, so many qualities for the eye and mind to absorb. 10/10
PHYSICS: Whilst this is the most important element and is used in such a unique manner (3-legged multi-control grip and synchronization w/ balance influence) which I truly do love, at times the physics can be... frustrating. I found myself swearing many a time in liquid environments because of the difficult balance/response strength to motion. In tight spots, I flew into a rage when sudden and unjustified death caused by some unreasonably speed/force impact caused me to restart all over with less patience than previously warranted. But in open areas, it is truly awe-inspiring and totally fun to have the legs speedy and hard at work, one over the next! 7/10
PLOT: An epic tale, the age-old struggle for survival against the world, the adversaries, survival against the odds! A lone tri-achnid, crushed and depressed by the loss of their mate to the roving predator of the mountains, Tri-Achnid seeks to quickly and safely collect its lost larvae and escape to both safety and the future of their species and to his own paradise. I love that, with subtlety, the story does not instill sexism or bias the hero on a gender; talking in 3rd-person and calling the Tri-Achnid words like 'you' and 'your' instill a sense anonymity not scene since the first Metroid or Halo game, allowing the players a stronger projection of themselves into the game! A classic plotline with the right twists and turns off-track! 10/10
SOUND: I can't judge the audio with a broken soundcard, so I will exclude its bias in the vote. I'm sure though, that the music and sounds are breath-taking and calming. I would love to hear the shimmy-swining level's wind flow.
OVERALL: An awesome game, with few flaws and many awesome experiences! 8/10, and the applause of many a VG officianado! I had much fun completing the game, then seeking out overseen larvae using level select! The story struck my very core, and I DEMAND to see more material like this!
[This has been an MD production/review. All hail Noah Antwiler, George Carlin, Douglas Walker and James Rolfe!]