Rocket Doll

You know, I like a game that doesn't overstay its welcome, but there's a fine line between concise and anemic.  Rocket Doll has a grand total of 2 levels, each not lasting more than 5 minutes.  I've always held to the notion that a game can be as short as it takes to explore its mechanics fully without dwelling on them, but if it only takes you 10 minutes then maybe you simply don't have enough mechanics to explore.  In the case of Rocket Doll, I can think only of two: rocket jumping and hitting targets to lower walls...Jeez, when you look at it that way, 10 minutes seems kinda generous!

So yeah, the game loses points straightaway because of its length, but as long as those 10 minutes were fun, the game will still get a pass by me.  So, were they?  Well...kinda.  I have the suspicion that the only reason those 10 minutes were fun was because I was throwing splodey rockets everywhere, because everything else about the game, while not too terrible, was pretty sub-par, which is a word I love using because it makes me sound like I'm sampling Merlot.

Anyway, the visual design would be impressive if this game were made in 2002, but that was more than a decade ago.  You may think this sounds hypocritical for a guy who praises the N64 era as the greatest in video game history, but even games like Deus Ex, whose graphics are terribly dated, had some sense of visual consistency.  Even without the white text at the start of a new level, I could immediately tell if I was in Hong Kong or Paris or what have you.  In Rocket Doll, I had no idea where the hell I was.  I knew I was probably somewhere underground because I was surrounded by dirt, but then there were green and yellow metal platforms and green force fields and what the hell is going on?

Besides, even games with horrible 3D art (like System Shock 2) still held my attention because of all the little things.  I don't care that the characters faces look like paper masks because that's not what it takes to truly immerse.  In Rocket Doll, what happened to the footstep sounds or the character grunts?

Well, there is some attention to detail.  It is a little charming to see a splotch of soot where your rocket landed, but that's about it.

All-in-all, it's a sort of fun romp but it's not a game I would praise for its design elements.  That's all I got for now.  Until next time, stay splodey.

Links
Do a Docket Roll: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=26699