Oh boy oh boy was it ever a hectic weekend for me. Sorry for the brief hiatus. I'll try to resume as close to a regular schedule as humanly possible.
So, today's game was called Astrobunny. I'll be honest, I didnt get a whole lot of time to play it, so I didn't experience all the levels, but I think I played enough of it to get the basic grasp of the levels.
This game is all about the principle of circular motion. You know, that thing that you thought you knew in physics class until you take the midterm and immediately feel the desire to abandon all hope? Or maybe that was just me...Anyway, you play as a wonderfully stylized space rabbit navigating your way around planets, using their gravitational fields to propel you from point A to point B. It's a quite fun arcadey title and the first one on this list that was actually able to bring a genuine smile to my face. I definitely recommend giving it a shot.
The gameplay is solid, the aesthetic is fluid and the controls are easy to understand. I have to say, what really sold me on this game was the music. The track that's played while storming through the main levels is really just a joy to listen to and certainly makes the experience that much better.
This game is great. I don't think anyone would deny that. However, as I mentioned in earlier reviews, the reason I wanted to play through the Digipen catalog is because I felt there would be no better way to really explore the use of games as an artistic medium. As much as I love Astrobunny as a fun time waster, I think I can actually say it's contributed something great to the value of games as a whole. Maybe just being a really fun game is all it needs. Maybe it doesn't need a narrative. Maybe I expect too much from a school project that was probably only made to get a good grade in some class.
The one thing this game did make me think of is the whole idea of gamifying education. Check out the Extra Credit on that if you haven't already. Really interesting stuff. I'll include the links below. Anyhow, it teaches a basic principle of circular motion (that of tangential movement in absence of a centripetal force) in a way that doesn't feel like school. It feels like playing a game. Personally, I think I'm going to show this game to my physics teacher and get his take on its use as a teaching tool. There could be a lot to learn from a game like Astrobunny. These kinds of things are what make me love games as a medium in the first place. If we can use this arcade-style school project to teach even a portion of physics at the 11th grade level in a way that is both fun and effective for students, the possibilities of contributions from games to society really do seem endless.
Wow, that rant was quite tangential, if you'll forgive the pun. I'm going to sign off now before I start talking about the place of philosophy in level design or something. I hope what I've said has made you curious enough to check out this game. I genuinely do think it provides something to think about. And if not, it's just a really fun time. This game gets my seal of approval.
Stay beautiful and tell your cousin I say hi.
Links
the game: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=26066
Extra Credits on Gamifying Education.: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuDLw1zIc94
