Carcophony is an indie puzzle game available on the Xbox Live Indie Marketplace. The Indie Marketplace is a place often inhabited by poorly-made clones of existing puzzle games, so imagine my surprise at discovering that not only is Carcophony an interesting new idea, it is actually remarkably well-made and, most importantly, genuinely good fun.
You play Carcophony by manipulating traffic lights to direct ever-increasing streams of coloured vehicles to their matching-coloured destinations. The premise is simple, and easy enough to pick up in the first few minutes of play.
Each game starts off slowly, lulling you into a quiet rhythm, before gradually cranking up the traffic count until you are franticly flicking between lights in a desperate bid to stave off over-congestion and, ultimately, game over. This system works really well, aided by the introduction of gradually more complex road systems, unlocked after surviving a particular ‘wave’ of traffic on the previous stage.
The presentation of Carcophony is great, from the simple but effective graphics to the excellent music track. One neat detail is the way the music increases in intensity as the game increases in speed. Another is the way the stage begins to pulse and rotate as the wave number increases, making it harder to keep track of the action, and all the more enjoyable for it.
The simple but effective gameplay, the gradual increase in pace and the excellent presentation makes a game of Carcophany almost hypnotically absorbing. It is addictive and entertaining, and that’s without mentioning its extra features, from competitive and cooperative multiplayer to a bespoke Achievement-type system which provides incentive to keep playing, which really take it a step above the usual Indie Marketplace fair.
For the price of a Burger King, it is difficult not to recommend Carcophony. I could argue that the initially slow pacing may not be to everyone’s tastes, or that the difficulty curve through the stages is somewhat steep, but really, this is a game that’s hard to knock. A genuinely original idea that is genuinely fun to play and is charmingly presented, Carcophony gives a lot of 800-point Arcade titles a run for their money, I would argue that it ends up actually being a cut above some of those games.
VideogameUK verdict: 8/10
