Peruse through the shelves of your nearest game retailer and one may be forgiven for writing off Nintendo’s Wii. A large proportion of family orientated games seem to strangle some of the genuine classics lurking at the back. WiiWare, however, is a totally different kettle of fish – and it’s here where I found ‘And Yet It Moves.’
First released on the PC last year, And Yet It Moves draws comparisons with Xbox Live’s ‘Limbo’ in as much as they are both side scrolling puzzle based platform games with a unique visual style, no fluffy back-story, and they are both utterly compelling. The premise is to get the game’s protagonist from the entrance of a level to the exit. The big trick though is that with a press of the ‘1’ button you can freeze your character and rotate the environment 360 degrees. Suddenly the wall that was blocking your path becomes a platform; the hole in front of you too high to reach appears below you – you really do have to think outside the box.
Don’t think this makes the game easy though, as your character is very fragile. If you hit the ground at speed you will die; if you rotate to an incorrect point you will fall into the void surrounding the level and die; if you get too close to a particularly hungry animal you will die – it gets genuinely difficult fairly quickly with some deft pausing and rotating expected, so there is a fair bit of trial and error.
The puzzles are more than simply navigating the terrain too – at times you are forced to guide objects such as boulders to a certain point where they can bust through a blocked path; or you can Manoeuvre bats so that they fight with an annoying Chameleon who’s hell bent on murdering you. Things then get really weird – I won’t ruin it for you but the landscape changes and the difficulty level ramps up causing you to question your sanity.
Don’t let that put you off though – the game has an uncanny ability to suck you back in because your objective is in sight most of the time, so when you die it’s because you weren’t quick enough, rather than unfair level design – so you feel compelled to try again. Thanks to some very good checkpoint spacing you are never very far from the place where you died though.
The game is fairly sizeable for a downloadable title and will occupy you for a good few hours. After you are done with the main quest I suggest you check out the additional play modes – Time Trial gives you a set time limit to reach a checkpoint, and Survival gives you limited lives to complete a level. There is also a ‘Limited Rotations’ mode, which restricts the amount you can rotate the screen. These are all fiendishly difficult and will more than likely result in smashed controls and dented egos.
I feel that credit is also due for the game’s visual style – where Limbo went with blacks, whites and greys; And Yet It Moves goes with levels created from torn newspapers/magazines. Whilst I wouldn’t describe it as beautiful, it certainly does grab your attention, and I doubt a gamble like that would be taken with a boxed retail product.
Pros
- Fantastic puzzles
- Good sized game
- Good level design
- “Just one more try” factor
Cons
- Perhaps too tough for some?
If you are looking for an interesting game that also prods your brain, I highly recommend you try And Yet It Moves for yourself – you won’t regret it.
Score: 9/10
Video taken from IndieGamesCom
bunimomike
Oh, it’s 360° but in 2D. I thought it was going to be the mind**** of mind****s in full XYZ. Thank god, somewhat, that it isn’t. My mind was bending just thinking about the latter and that it might be too complex. However, after seeing the video I think I might grab this on the PC. Looks bizarre but in a good way.
Cheers for bring it to my/our attention, Dan. A hidden gem for sure.
Dan Lee
Just for clarity – the PC version is not 360 degree movement, but locked to twists of 90 degrees. Makes very little difference though. :o)
bunimomike
Ah, good to know. Cheers, matey.
aerobes
This sounds really great! Like the PSN, It seems like WiiWare is where the juicy goodness is!
Are Nintendo features going to become a Saturday Regular, Dan?
I hope so because even though I’m now only a PS3 owner (and PSP and DSi), I find it fascinating what the other companies are doing and I already feel like my arm is slightly twisted concerning a Wii purchase. :D
Good stuff and thanks.
Dan Lee
That’s good to hear! We are hoping to provide some Ninty goodness over the weekends – glad you’re enjoying it!
Winkle
Is there a version of this for the PS3 in pipeline?
Dan Lee
Not that Ive heard of mate.
Apnomis
I didn’t think TSA did Wii stuff? I thought a Move version might have been in the pipeline since it was getting coverage… :(
Dany2Step
sony better pull their socks up and get some indie devs working on stuff like this for ps3.
i dont want to buy move and get lumbered with 12 shooters and a ‘casual’ sports package. i am looking forward to echochrome ii though.
Dan Lee
WiiWare is crammed with gems like this – but they never seem to get promoted very well.
aerobes
I like to think that’s what makes it so … It’s like “wow! ‘I’ found an awesome game, yay me!’
Orrrrr … Is that just me?
Dany2Step
yeah it seems nintendo wii has more than its fair share of innovation hidden behind the new-school waggle-fest face of its current shelved games.
its like net-yaroze or something, just this underground scene of great games that are rarely seeing the light of day.
strongly considering a wii purchase in the future, just for the games on wii ware
Dany2Step
@aerobes, nah im with you there, its the same as when you discover an up and coming band… although theres little to no chance the game will become incredibley popular in a few years, leaving you telling all the hipsters a the party that you used to play it before it was multi-plat.
aerobes
Very cool analogy, man!
Dany2Step
i try : D
TSBonyman
Nice to see some Ninty stuff on TSA. That looks like a decent game.
jacklum
You can get this as part of the ‘Mega Love Indie Bundle’ for <£20 on the PC at the moment. Includes; AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity, And Yet It Moves, Auditorium, Aztaka, Brainpipe, Captain Forever, Cogs, Eufloria, Machinarium, Osmos, Saira and Space Giraffe.
http://savygamer.co.uk/2010/09/16/mega-love-indie-bundle-19-69/
Kennykazey
I’m pretty sure I tried the PC version of this some time ago.
Found it to be pretty good.
Deathbrin
WiiWare? Do we have a section for this on TSA?