Reviews// VVVVVV

VVVVVV took the world by storm when it was released on PC back in January 2010. Developed by lone coder Terry Cavanagh, it was one of several key indie games that really captured the hearts of retro-loving gamers around the world. Now thanks to Nicalis, it has finally arrived on a console - the Nintendo 3DS. And it couldn’t have found a more appropriate home, really.

If you’ve never had the chance to play this wonderful little indie game, let me give you the basics. You control a character called Captain Viridian, a spacefaring hero who becomes separated with his crewmen when his ship encounters some strange ‘dimensional interference.’

So you trot off to rescue your friends and try to find a way back home... but there’s a catch. Besides moving with either the D-pad or Circle Pad, there’s only one button that can help you pass by obstacles and clear stages. And it’s not a jump button. Instead of leaping, pressing any button will reverse gravity - and each room is designed with character-flipping in mind.

There’s no other way to describe it, other than incredibly and beautifully creative. After being led in gently with a simple ‘run on the roof to pass by some spikes on the ground’ puzzle, you’ll be tasked with making pixel-perfect manouevres in order to reach from one side of the room to the other. If you touch anything, you die and reappear at one of the numerous checkpoints littered throughout the game - adding a rather sadistic Super Meat Boy ‘just one more go’ quality to the proceedings.

It’s devilishly hard, and every step of the way there are interesting and challenging new ways to trip you up - from wires that automatically bounce you the opposite direction, to moving floors and even rooms which, when touching an edge of the screen, makes you appear on the other side. Later, you encounter Intermission stages which add Abe’s Oddysee-style gameplay elements, where you must help guide a crew member to safety.

Enemies and location designs are a combination of self-imposed technical limitation and fantastic creative ingenuity - the latter largely a result of the former. One room sees you trying to pass by a ghost that travels up and down the screen, but later on you’ll be trying to overcome trumpets, buses, warped Pac-Man lookalikes and even words like ‘Truth’ and ‘Lies.’ That’s to say nothing of the spikes that are a constant threat throughout.

The presentation is a deliciously retro affair. A Commodore 64 is the clear inspiration behind the graphical style (the icon for VVVVVV on the 3DS menu even represents a classic C64 tape), with a rudimentary colour palette and levels chained together by multiple single-screen rooms. The latter in particular makes things all the more surprising when you complete the first stage and realise there’s practically an open world for you to explore at will. You could happily drown in the sublime chiptune music and sound direction, too.

The Nintendo 3DS edition is a pixel-perfect rendition of the original contemporary classic. Button presses are incredibly responsive, the Circle Pad is surprisingly well-suited for movement (although I’d still take the D-pad for the especially demanding and potentially soul-destroying rooms) and there are several modes beyond the main game to entertain yourself with.

Time Attacks, repeat plays of Intermission Stages and No Death Mode add to the suspense (and sometimes misery as you fail for the millionth time), and the 3D effects that are included here are very nice indeed. The stereoscopic view is akin to the effect seen in the Excitebike 3DS remake - 2D layers pop out ever so slightly, and while they add an extra bit of class to the presentation it’s all quite subtle so it never really puts a strain on your eyes.

The only gripe here is that, sadly, the 3DS version of VVVVVV doesn’t contain a level editor. Nor is it likely that there will be an opportunity to expand the game with approved user-generated content. However, a good number of homemade VVVVVV worlds are included. 18 of them in fact, ranging from large to massive, and all offering a fresh experience from the core game - with one particular world designed by Markus ‘Notch’ Persson of Minecraft fame. For £7.20, you’re getting a rather satisfying spread of content.

Nintendo has been rather selective when it comes to highlighting (or even publishing) digitally distributed games on its 3DS eShop. But titles such as VVVVVV prove that it really knows what it's doing in its selection. It marks another great addition to a service that's getting a reputation for including the finest experiences.

If you want some delightful retro action on the go, you owe it to yourself to get VVVVVV.


Pros
Incredibly addictive gameplay
Fantastically creative design
3D adds to the experience

Cons
Can test your patience
No level editor
Ability to expand with add-on packs unlikely


SPOnG Score: 9/10