VVVVVV

This has some pretty strong buzz surrounding it, so I had to give the demo a whirl. After all, dumb gimmicky Flash games can be a fun afternoon-waster.

A few minutes later, I'd decided: VVVVVV is brilliant.

I didn't even finish the demo, but I'm hooked already. The game mechanics are simple, so it's incredibly fast to get into - but challenging in the levels' somewhat-evil difficulty. And yet, it never feels frustrating, because of the exceedingly generous checkpoint system. A single challenge may take several tries and several deaths, but at least in the demo, I never had to repeat a sequence so long that I'd call it bullshit.

Of course, I'd be lying if I said the presentation had nothing to do with the game's charm. The blocky retro graphics and simple character emotions (your guy frowns when he dies) are adorable, and the high-energy chiptune music perfectly suits the game action.

The appeal of the game has a lot in common with Braid, which is a very good thing.

Progress: Played the demo