I don't understand the problem with the smoke rings people are having. Click *one* release. Just takes a little timing. Sad ending man. Anyone upset should just replay level 3-7. All the foreshadowing you need about what's going to happen right there.
Reviews for "Fixation"
FreeAsANerd responds:
Yeah, some people pick up on the smoke ring control pretty quickly, but it was too frustrating for a lot of other people. Tough thing to balance, I guess! Things like that are something that I'm still trying to learn about, so it makes sense that it's a rough point.
Thanks for reviewing!
*THIS COMMENT IS PROLLY GOING TO BE FULL OF SPOILERS, YOU'VE BEEN WARNED*
TCOM = The Company of Myself
FXT = Fixation
General:
My hopes were quite low for this game, I was sure it was going to be one lousy prequel to a somehow over-estimated game... don't get me wrong, TCOM is beautiful, but people over-estimate it.
I'm glad to see I was wrong.
Even without being a prequel to TCOM, FXT has merits of it's own.
The idea of using tabbaco-smoke to get over your mental-problems was great. I've to agree with some other reviewers that the mechanics were kind of sloppy from time to time, but I like the idea.
It has great graphics and good music.
Last but not least, the more "realistic tone" of this game makes it actually more coherent than TCOM. This game is not a dream nor reality, is something in the middle, and being on the twilight is awesome. Makes the experience even more deeper.
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Gameplay:
It was good, most complains I've about gameplay have been addressed by other people (like the requirement to explain things).
I've to say I LOVED the meadow chapter gameplay-wise. You get a great the feeling of "cooperation" from it, which makes the connections with TCOM greater. (it shows Katherine feels the same way towards Jim as Jim describes in TCOM).
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Plot:
I usually have a saying: "no matter how CRAPPY an story is, the MOST important thing is the story-telling", and use as example things I love but have crappy stories like "Dragon Ball Z" or "Kingdom Hearts".
For most of the part, you follow that rule. You tell a very simple story (girl meets boy, boy makes her feel special, she falls in love, shrink dies), but it turns out to be GREATLY interesting.
What you really, REALLY need to work on is the ending.
"TCOM had a great ending (story-wise) but the story-telling was awful, making it uncanny.
You should have smoothed a little the translation between "crazy-land" and "reality". It feels really ass-pulled.
FXT not only had a crappy ending (you didn't explain HOW Katherine died, which is important considering SHE was the main character), but the whole ending feels unsatisfactory (you don't even explain how Jack received the news... he is just there, with convenient amnesia).
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All and all good game, you kept me more than 1 hour in a row playing a Flash Game, something that never happens.
4/5
FreeAsANerd responds:
There's a little more to the ending than what you've described, but I can't really say whether or not that's what made it unsatisfying for you. Glad you enjoyed most of the other parts, though, and thanks a bunch for such an in-depth review!
too much reading, but i enjoyed the gameplay and puzzle
FreeAsANerd responds:
Thanks!
Okay so I'm all out for Deep Artsy games. And this is one of those.
I think the message is interesting and the concept of this game is awesome.
However I believe in execution it feels disjointed.
My main issue with this game is how abstracted and unrelated the actual gameplay seems to be in relation with the message. The gameplay feels completely out of place in the story, and I think you could have thought out a gameplay that was more related with the narrative or the message you wanted to convey other than platforming and lighting switches with smoke.
Don't get me wrong the gameplay is greatly coded, the music is masterfully done (was it dynamic?) and the message of the story is really interesting. However when you piece them together it doesn't mix up well.
4/5 Very good game, keep improving!
Pretty good . hard to get it at the right moment to form a circle