In an increasingly shallow world, it’s fantastic to see a game like VVVVVV. It forgoes the things we are so used to now such as fancy graphics and complicated game mechanics, all in favour of a simple premise which works perfectly. It’s not surprising really considering it comes from accomplished indie developer, Terry Cavanagh, who has already impressed with the likes of Don’t Look Back and Pathways. Much like those titles, VVVVVV wouldn’t look out of place on a Commodore 64 or ZX Spectrum but look past its basic exterior and you’ll find a terrifically clever puzzle platformer that is also one of the most challenging games I’ve played in years.
It’s a credit to the game’s development that even though the graphics are basic, I still felt a strange amount of endearment to the main protagonist, Veridian. He reminded me slightly of Sackboy from Little Big Planet while also harking back to my memories of the Dizzy games back in the 1980s. Constantly smiling away, nothing seems to get Veridian down despite being faced with many, many perils. His mission? To save his crewmates who have been scattered across a strange dimension after their spaceship crash lands. VVVVVV is a 2d platformer at heart with each of the levels not being overly long to complete, assuming you know what you’re doing. It sounds simple, it isn’t. Veridian only has one ability at his disposal: the ability to invert gravity. It might not sound like much but it makes for some very intriguing puzzles.
VVVVVV is far from an easy game, very far from it. I’m not ashamed to admit that I accrued over 1000 deaths in my first completion of the game. At times there is a fair amount of trial and error to getting past various obstacles but this never gets frustrating. The majority of the time you are never more than 5-6 seconds away from a checkpoint meaning that when you do die, you’re never forced to repeat very long segments of the game. This makes the difficulty level of VVVVVV perfectly pitched as it’s evident that Cavanagh appreciated that this game was perilously close to being annoyingly awkward rather than challenging. Instead with the appropriately placed checkpoints available, it just makes the game satisfying whenever you pass a particularly frustrating section.
Frequently I found myself having to re-adjust how I approached a situation with VVVVVV often challenging conventional concepts on how to deal with certain problems. As expected in such a brief game (VVVVVV only weighs in at less than 3hrs to complete) none of these situations last for more than a few seconds in theory, but it was refreshing to sit at my monitor and ponder just how to get around such puzzles. Besides planning a route ahead, fast reflexes are also crucial due to the nature in which Veridian can invert gravity. One particularly memorable section was a moving room called the Tower. This section involved spikes on the bottom of the screen pursuing Veridian as well as spikes on the top stopping me from moving too quickly. It took me many, many attempts to perfect with both timing and memorisation of the sequences crucial to success. As I traversed more and more puzzles like this I found myself already vowing to return for a second playthrough to attempt to perfect my path, ensuring a minimal number of deaths.
As another nod to VVVVVV’s appreciation that not all players will manage to complete the game, but still want to experience all that it has to offer, players can unlock the various bonus modes available right from the outset. These comprise of the likes of time trial modes and the, surely impossible, no death mode. There is also a jukebox to unlock enabling players to listen to all the music of the game. Fans of the 8-bit wonders of the Commodore 64 and Spectrum era will love the music on offer here which, much like the game itself, certainly sparks a strong sense of nostalgia within. There are also 20 collectible trinkets to acquire throughout the game for those desperate for even more of a challenge, with many of the trinkets being in very elaborate places.
VVVVVV is a true gem of a game that older gamers with memories of the 8-bit era will particularly adore. It is a little brief at only around 3 hours but it never feels short. Instead it feels like the perfect length for such a game ensuring that you will continuously smiling throughout, even though there might be the odd urge to punch a wall when you die for the 50th time in the same section. The little nuances are wonderful and I found myself regularly impressed when I realised the solution to a puzzle which previously had stumped me. The various names given to each section are a great touch, and something that really resided with me for a while after completing VVVVVV. It might not be the cheapest of indie games on offer nor the longest but VVVVVV oozes class and shouldn’t be missed by any self respecting puzzle platformer fan.
VideogameUK verdict: 9/10
As well as appearing on the PC the game is also available in Mac and, coming soon, Linux flavours. You can order the game direct from the developer or try out the demo here.
