Well "Summer Of Arcade" for Xbox 360 is here and the first offering is a game called Limbo.
I watched the trailer for this game, and was like "Could be cool." Sadly, I was very much mistaken. First of all this game is 1200 Microsoft Points. For a 12-14 dollar game this had better be worth my money. Alas, it was not. The game is completely in black and white. While this was obviously an artsy choice even on a 1080p Hi-Def Tv the game looks BAD! It's grainy and blurry (on purpose no less), there is virtually no sound outside of the random sound effect, or something breaking or hurting you. It's just a really drab, boring game.
All the reviews I have read is that it's a "cerebral adventure." Please, deciding what I want for dinner is a harder task than any single puzzle that I witnessed in the demo. Now sure I did just play the demo, but the idea of a DEMO is to get an idea of what the game is like. There was not a single puzzle where I scratched my head, or decided that I needed help from the internet. In chapter 2 (which btw it doesn't even tell you that you have progressed) there was one "puzzle" that for a blip of brain power had me stumped. By blip literally when I died, I exhaled and realized the solution to the puzzle.
Personally, I would avoid this 1st offering for the summer of arcade until it comes down to a much more suitable price of 400 points or less. Honestly, if you want a game that is worth your 1200 points, looks brilliant, and the puzzles are ACTUAL PUZZLES get the BEAUTIFUL game BRAID. Limbo sadly is like Braid's ugly duckling awkward cousin. Not worth the points they are asking for and overall a minimalistic game with little to offer after it has been beaten. And with what I did play that shouldn't take anyone with any form of brain power more than a few hours max.
Rating (1 being bad and 5 being AWESOME)
Gameplay: 2
Visuals: 1
Music: 0
Replay value: 1
Price: 2
Overall: 1.2
DON'T LET THE TRAILER FOOL YOU! THERE IS VIRTUALLY NO MUSIC IN LIMBO!
For a "RAVING" (obviously paid for) review, click here.
