Saturday 9 April 2011

Top 10 of '10: Number 8 - VVVVVV (PC)

I just about squealed with glee when I first played VVVVVV. That was just before I nearly put my controller through the screen of my laptop in frustration...

VVVVVV is another indie game, although it's now available through the mighty Steam, so it's not exactly difficult to get hold of. The reason I almost squealed with glee is that VVVVVV loads like a Commodore 64 game... and then when it's loaded, it looks and almost sounds like a Commodore 64 game. The reason I almost put my controller through the screen is that it plays like a Commodore 64 game...

But I don't mean that in a bad way.


Old computers are so fiddly...

VVVVVV is a platform game in the grand tradition, albeit with a slight twist. You can't actually jump... instead, you can do a gravity flip. So from running along a floor, you'll flip onto the ceiling. And then you'll flip back down onto the floor. It takes a bit of getting used to, but once you do it works well, and lends itself to some pretty tricky puzzley manoeuvring.

Stopping you from getting about are spikes... that's where the game gets its title from. In another homage to the old-school platformers, each screen has its own name. Unlike those games, you might not spend long on some of those screens. You whizz about at a fair old pace... too fast if you're not careful. It's all too easy to overcook it and land on a rack of spikes. Ouchie.


Who the hell builds a spaceship like this, anyway?

I've bought VVVVVV twice now... once it was released on Steam, I picked up a second copy in the sale, and it's now only £3.99 at its full price, so I'll once again recommend it to anyone that's a child of the Eighties and loved a rock hard platform game. I was torn about whether or not to put this above Hydorah, but despite its difficulty I actually progressed further with VVVVVV than I did with Hydorah and had more nostalgia-fuelled giggles, so although I probably enjoy Hydorah a little more now, VVVVVV just squeaks in as my eighth most-enjoyed game of 2010.

6 comments:

  1. To be frank VVVVVV would easily make my top 3 2010 games and it's easily the second best (to Manic Miner only) platformer I've ever had the pleasure of playing. I just love this game.

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  2. Ahhh, you're going to be disappointed with the rest of my top 10 then, it's way more mainstream!

    Cracking game this, though, pressed all my Monty on the Run buttons.

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  3. I need to go back and complete this. It's far too good to have on one's pile of shame. Thanks for the reminder!

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  4. Your pile of shame can't be as high as mine, so I wouldn't worry about it too much! But I intend to press on to the end of this one.

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  5. I do hope this doesn't end up as another pile of shame contest. Anyway. Mine's bigger. Shamefully so.

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  6. I pretty much have a Modest-Sized Mountain of Shame at this point. But VVVVVV - wonderful game. It has the dual effect of making me feel like I'm playing on my old C64 again, while reminding me just how badly my gaming skills have degraded over the years. But I still love it.

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