Game title: Quantum Conundrum
Platform: PS3 via PSN, Xbox 360 via XBLA, PC via Steam
Developer: Airtight Games
Release date: June 21 - July 11 (depending on the platform) 2012
Pregame:
Quantum Conundrum is the brainchild of Airtight Games, a company that now includes Kim Swift, the former lead designer for Valve's amazing Portal. Swift served as the director for Quantum Conundrum, and she reportedly aimed to make a game similar to Portal's style of first-person puzzle solving.
Anything that comes from the mind of a Portal creator is something I want to try, so I picked up Quantum Conundrum to see what it's all about.
Play-by-play:
The game opens strong by introducing the main character as a kid making his annual visit to his super-scientist uncle's house. The uncle, Professor Quadrangle, is a connoisseur of the absurd, although his own inventions take the cake. Each year, Quadrangle has shown off a new invention, but something seems to have gone wrong this year. Players will need to use Quadrangle's latest creation, the Inter-dimensional Shift Device (IDS for short), to put things right.
The IDS is a glove that allows the player to jump between dimensions while staying in the same physical space. Think of it this way: there are multiple versions of the same place existing simultaneously, and someone wearing an IDS can hop into another version and affect the world differently. Players will eventually be able to shift between Normal, Fluffy, Heavy, Slow, and Reverse Gravity dimensions. When players shift dimensions, everything changes, and I mean everything. For example, take a look at what happens when players shift from the normal dimension to the lightweight Fluffy dimension.
Everything becomes light and fluffy, even the content of paintings on the wall. Primarily, this will allow the player to lift heavy things (mostly safes) and progress through levels. Still, looking at the different versions of paintings is probably my favorite thing to do in this game. Just check out what happens when shifting from Heavy dimension back to Normal.
In case you didn't notice, there's a lot of lighthearted humor to this game. From Quadrangle's odd inventions (the "Every Day I'm Shovelin'" digging machine is my favorite) to the messages that appear when the player dies, everything can produce a chuckles here. Incidentally, my personal favorite post-mortem message is, "Thing #106 you will never experience: The ridiculous price of college tuition in seven years (seriously, for a state school it'll be like $95,000)."
There's also the inclusion of the fuzzy little Interdimensional Kinetic Entity, or IKE for short. IKE is Quadrangle's cute pet/companion, and he'll regularly add a little character to the adventure here and there.
The game's humor is expertly dispersed throughout the game, even mid-way through puzzles. That's a welcome addition, because the puzzles tend to be pretty easy, and they only offer a mild learning curve. They do showcase the game's dimensional gameplay very well, and navigating them is always an entertaining endeavor. Airtight games seems to have focused on players legging it through the levels as opposed to solving complex problems.
There are a few challenging moments in the game, although they are sadly few and far between. They could be more common, but the animated Professor Quadrangle screws that right up. The guy has something to say at all times. I appreciate his silly stories and incredibly corny jokes, but I draw the line at his incessant hint-dropping. They're not subtle hints, either; he basically walks players through some sections of the game. At one point he actually tells the player when to jump and throw an object while they're doing it.
You know what, Doc? If I wanted someone to walk me through the game, I'd have found a walkthrough. I can figure out the puzzles myself. I actually enjoy it. In fact, that's the whole reason I picked up this game in the first place!
Seriously, 90% of the fun in games like this originates from that moment when the player finally solves a difficult problem. Just telling the player the solution robs them of that moment, and thus their fun. It's easy to say that the folks at Airtight Games might have been trying to make the game more accessible to kids, but kids can solve puzzles too, and suggesting that they can't is just insulting to young gamers.
This game might actually be aimed at young gamers, though, judging by the plot. Let me explain: as the game progresses, there are hints that something darker is brewing. Strange earthquakes begin to manifest, Ike becomes alternatively sad and angry, and Quadrangle's hitherto-absent short-term memory begins to return. Despite all that buildup and foreshadowing, the eventual payoff is overly simplistic and it leaves a bad aftertaste. It's unsatisfying, and a little disappointing, if you're expecting a huge plot twist.
The plot doesn't twist so much as list lazily to the left, and once it does that, the game is over. There is literally no resolution. Maybe they wanted to leave players wanting more (read: DLC), but really, the game just feels unfinished - like they just slapped an ending on there and called it a day.
Final Call:
Quantum Conundrum is a solid puzzler that is a blast to play through. Even if the ending is lackluster, the story's setup and the overall world is a lightheartedly odd place to enjoy oneself. If it weren't for the ending and all the bloody hints, this would be a truly great game. As it is, it's a good game, and that's no small accomplishment. It's a bit short, but it's definitely merits a playthrough, although maybe not two.
Platform: PS3 via PSN, Xbox 360 via XBLA, PC via Steam
Developer: Airtight Games
Release date: June 21 - July 11 (depending on the platform) 2012
Pregame:
Quantum Conundrum is the brainchild of Airtight Games, a company that now includes Kim Swift, the former lead designer for Valve's amazing Portal. Swift served as the director for Quantum Conundrum, and she reportedly aimed to make a game similar to Portal's style of first-person puzzle solving.
Anything that comes from the mind of a Portal creator is something I want to try, so I picked up Quantum Conundrum to see what it's all about.
Play-by-play:
The game opens strong by introducing the main character as a kid making his annual visit to his super-scientist uncle's house. The uncle, Professor Quadrangle, is a connoisseur of the absurd, although his own inventions take the cake. Each year, Quadrangle has shown off a new invention, but something seems to have gone wrong this year. Players will need to use Quadrangle's latest creation, the Inter-dimensional Shift Device (IDS for short), to put things right.
The IDS is a glove that allows the player to jump between dimensions while staying in the same physical space. Think of it this way: there are multiple versions of the same place existing simultaneously, and someone wearing an IDS can hop into another version and affect the world differently. Players will eventually be able to shift between Normal, Fluffy, Heavy, Slow, and Reverse Gravity dimensions. When players shift dimensions, everything changes, and I mean everything. For example, take a look at what happens when players shift from the normal dimension to the lightweight Fluffy dimension.
Everything becomes light and fluffy, even the content of paintings on the wall. Primarily, this will allow the player to lift heavy things (mostly safes) and progress through levels. Still, looking at the different versions of paintings is probably my favorite thing to do in this game. Just check out what happens when shifting from Heavy dimension back to Normal.
In case you didn't notice, there's a lot of lighthearted humor to this game. From Quadrangle's odd inventions (the "Every Day I'm Shovelin'" digging machine is my favorite) to the messages that appear when the player dies, everything can produce a chuckles here. Incidentally, my personal favorite post-mortem message is, "Thing #106 you will never experience: The ridiculous price of college tuition in seven years (seriously, for a state school it'll be like $95,000)."
The game's humor is expertly dispersed throughout the game, even mid-way through puzzles. That's a welcome addition, because the puzzles tend to be pretty easy, and they only offer a mild learning curve. They do showcase the game's dimensional gameplay very well, and navigating them is always an entertaining endeavor. Airtight games seems to have focused on players legging it through the levels as opposed to solving complex problems.
There are a few challenging moments in the game, although they are sadly few and far between. They could be more common, but the animated Professor Quadrangle screws that right up. The guy has something to say at all times. I appreciate his silly stories and incredibly corny jokes, but I draw the line at his incessant hint-dropping. They're not subtle hints, either; he basically walks players through some sections of the game. At one point he actually tells the player when to jump and throw an object while they're doing it.
You know what, Doc? If I wanted someone to walk me through the game, I'd have found a walkthrough. I can figure out the puzzles myself. I actually enjoy it. In fact, that's the whole reason I picked up this game in the first place!
Seriously, 90% of the fun in games like this originates from that moment when the player finally solves a difficult problem. Just telling the player the solution robs them of that moment, and thus their fun. It's easy to say that the folks at Airtight Games might have been trying to make the game more accessible to kids, but kids can solve puzzles too, and suggesting that they can't is just insulting to young gamers.
This game might actually be aimed at young gamers, though, judging by the plot. Let me explain: as the game progresses, there are hints that something darker is brewing. Strange earthquakes begin to manifest, Ike becomes alternatively sad and angry, and Quadrangle's hitherto-absent short-term memory begins to return. Despite all that buildup and foreshadowing, the eventual payoff is overly simplistic and it leaves a bad aftertaste. It's unsatisfying, and a little disappointing, if you're expecting a huge plot twist.
The plot doesn't twist so much as list lazily to the left, and once it does that, the game is over. There is literally no resolution. Maybe they wanted to leave players wanting more (read: DLC), but really, the game just feels unfinished - like they just slapped an ending on there and called it a day.
Final Call:
Quantum Conundrum is a solid puzzler that is a blast to play through. Even if the ending is lackluster, the story's setup and the overall world is a lightheartedly odd place to enjoy oneself. If it weren't for the ending and all the bloody hints, this would be a truly great game. As it is, it's a good game, and that's no small accomplishment. It's a bit short, but it's definitely merits a playthrough, although maybe not two.
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