PAX East 2011: Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet Hands-On Impressions

Fuelcell Games made an appearance this weekend at PAX East in Boston where they showcased their upcoming Xbox Live Arcade title Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet. The game may have a long, convoluted name, but the game gives you an elegantly simple playing experience full of exploration and entertainment.

The game may remind you of PixelJunk Shooter since both involve you controlling a spaceship and maneuvering it through labyrinthine caverns and reaching the final goal. The game uses silhouettes and shadows to give its environments a dark appearance, but these simple design choices make the game feel like a mysterious trip into an unknown world. It may also remind you of Limbo’s dark settings, but there are various colors scattered through the game that give life to the various creatures you’ll encounter.

The demo I played walked me through the basic elements of the game. You can swap your ship’s weapons and tools anytime you need their assistance. For example, your ship’s scanner can turn on certain switches and release levers as well. Switching to its hook, you can grab items like rocks to clear the way forward. Your ship also has a blaster to shoot enemies down with. My demo only had these three weapons, and I had to experiment with each one to solve each that level’s puzzles. In fact, a big portion of the game relies on exploration and there are special items hidden throughout each map for you to find. I am not sure what exactly they unlock, but I’m sure this will be revealed later on.

I enjoyed my time with Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet. Like I said before, the game encourages exploration, so if I didn’t have people waiting on me to play it, I would have spent a lot more time exploring the different crevices of the level I played. This aside, the game is very inventive and it is sure to be another great title to own.

Look for Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet when it comes out for Xbox Live Arcade this summer.

Published March 2011 | VGRevolution.com

Category : Previews
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