LostWinds

After reading Brad's comment, I thought that this is the kind of game that would really benefit from level design, since moving is the primary form of gameplay. No sooner did I ponder the connection to Zelda-esque dungeon puzzles than I got one. Use the wind to blow a rock around, which you must navigate through tunnels and over platforms until it gets to a switch, all the while protecting Toku as he moves with - or sometimes not with - it at the same time. And then there are these doors, different types of which must be taken down with different abilities, and magic whistling rocks, and it's very cool.

Combat is a non-issue in LostWinds. Most of the enemies can be defeated by gusting wind on them, and "harder" foes just involve doing something else, like using the wind to drop a rock on them, before they turn into the easy guys. Ideally (that is, if you don't get hit), Toku is completely uninvolved in combat. Based on the trailer, I can surmise that the end of the game has a boss-fight, but the hardest enemy I've run into so far I just had to fly over.

Speaking of, I just got a cape! Which means now I can use wind even more effectively in wafting Toku around. Whereas before my capacity to fly was limited by gusting power, using the "slipstream" ability I can just blow the cape, and Toku with it, almost anywhere. Which makes me think I'm nearing the end of the game.

My only meter for progress, which I only recently found out about, is in the form of four treasure-style chests that contain the memory of a spirit I'm supposed to save. It's related to the game's story, which I'll talk about in a later post since so far I don't even have much to explain. But I didn't even find chest #1 until I'd already put some time into the game. So who knows.

Anyway, LostWinds is shaping up really nicely, and even if it does end soon I wouldn't be disappointed. It's a nice game on the whole, and for $10 I'd call it an absolute steal.

Progress: Two chest ... things