Download Games Roundup
Gemini! Hoard! Flux! CreaVures! Rustle!
Bit.Trip Flux
- WiiWare - 800 WiiWare points - £5.60 - Trailer
If you expected Commander Video: The Dating Simulator, I wouldn't blame you. But as much as Gaijin Games wanted to break away from making yet more Pong Rhythm Action, the allure of super pixelated hand-jiving funk evidently proved too strong.
Now onto the sixth (and final) dose of Bit.Trip madness, the team has essentially come full circle, with what serves a companion to the original Bit.Trip Beat.
Once again it's all about defending your honour in a world constructed of pixels larger than your own face. Restless formations of these chunky missiles appear from the left hand side of the screen, and it's up to you to swat them back from whence they came in time to a insistent chiptune soundtrack. So far, so similar.
Mastery of your 'paddle' relies on your ability to tilt the Wii Remote to-and-fro with metronomic precision, and such is the exacting nature of this trial by rhythm, you may want to ensure the wrist strap is firmly attached lest you launch the controller at the TV in the full fury of incessant failure.
But as ultra hardcore as Flux remains, concessions have finally been introduced, such as checkpoints, and the ability to select each mission at your leisure. New features such as two player co-op, new power-ups and enemy types also help freshen up a formula that, this far down the line, feels like it has run its course. Still, it was fun while it lasted.
7/10
CreaVures
It's not often these days that a game demands your attention almost solely because of the way it looks, but, then again, few platform puzzlers have ever been as unfairly pretty as CreaVures.
Boasting a kind of nocturnal fluorescence last seen in those gobsmacking forest scenes in Avatar, it barely matters that the 15 mildly challenging side-scrolling levels aren't all that engaging. Your visual cortex will be far too busy wallowing in the velvety opulence on show throughout, as you gradually restore life to a dying forest via the magic of precision jumping and kleptomania.
During your adventures, you'll perpetually need to swap between characters to make the most of whatever the environment throws at you. At first, Bitey and Pokey are the stars of the show, with Bitey offering a tail for his pal to climb on, while Pokey can scare off enemies with the spines on his back, and create makeshift ladders into the bargain.
As you work your way through, Zappy, Rolly and Flick add their unique abilities to the mix, and matters gradually get more interesting as you figure out how best to traverse the gorgeous terrain. More often than not, though, the game feels hobbled by irksome jump and swing mechanics, and merely getting around always feels far more of a faff than it probably should.
But if you're of a forgiving nature and want to bathe your eyes in magnificence for a few hours, who are we to judge?
6/10