Art Style Review Part One: Orbient
Remember those odd, quirky, and defiantly low res "bit Generations" games Nintendo released back in 2006? The budget/art series had plenty of highlights, like the F-Zero-meets-Tron racer Dotstream, the audio focused Soundvoyager and the blissfully serene Coloris. Yeah, Boundish is a complete waste of time, but the series as a whole was an interesting low-cost experiment. While the series was never brought over here to the states, it seems like someone over at Nintendo thought that some of the concepts deserved to be revisited over WiiWare. So far three games have been released under the new "Art Style" branding, but are they worth playing? Over the next few days I'll be taking quick looks at the gravity distorting Orbient, the tastefully decorated Cubello, and Rotohex, the most subtly minimalist of the bunch.
Hit the jump for our review of Orbient!
What happens when 2001: A Space Odyssey gets drunk at a party and does something dirty with Katamari Damacy? You get a hangover of a planetary proportions and a quirky game named Orbient. The player begins each solar system as a tiny star set into perpetual motion. You're able to glide around other neighboring planets, both big and small, by adjusting your own planet's gravity with the A and B buttons. Not content with being the smallest celestial body around town, you set out looking to merge with other planets smaller than your star to become big enough to consume other stars and planets that were once too big for you absorb.
It's at this point that Katarami influence ends. While The Prince of All Cosmos runs around frantically trying to get rubber ducks to stick to his Katarami, Orbient aims for a much more subdued feeling. To call the game's relaxed approach "chill" is an understatement. A melodious aura of atmosphere that permeates through the entire game more than makes up for the game's lack of scientifically accurate visuals. This serene pace and setting opens the door to puzzles the Prince could never attempt. Solutions require that players to perform more exact movements through out the entire solar system rather than mashing analogue sticks. It would be easy to play Orbient's first level and ask, "Is that it?" The answer is yes, but there's more. The game's depth and appeal comes from the graceful patterns of movement and finding ways to blend with them, not against them. The levels are clearly laid out, allowing players to accurately predict and respond to the movements of other planets and stars. Letting your star become a part of the solar system rather than blasting your way through it is a surprisingly addictive hook that I haven't seen replicated in many other games.
For those that imported the bit Generations version, known as Orbital, there's 20 additional levels seen in this release with a few extra surprises that make the game's already low price tag that much more reasonable. The polish and presentation given to this game on its console release heightens an already great game into something more atmospheric, complete, and other worldly. Orbient may not appeal to those with trigger fingers, but presents a uniquely meditative experience that should be a warm welcome to those of us that play games to relax.
9 out of 10
Game-Boy
Posted to Hot Stuff, Reviews, Video Games on 10 November 2008
· Comments (3)
Other stuff like this: art style, bit generations, nintendo, orbient, wii, wiiware
Downloaded this game after a brief trial at a friend's house. It is very simple with engaging music, which gets more in-depth and engaging when more moons orbit your planet.
Very deep game for only using two buttons.
Ok, so I'm not the only one who knows who that guy is right?
And I'm not the only one who has a huge crush on said dude, right?
...right?
He's adorable! I was curious about Cubello, now I've got to see how hot his Orbient is ;)