Cleril
02-14-2010, 08:31 PM
flOw is a PSN exclusive that can be bought for 5 bucks on the store, or if you downloaded it yesterday you got it for free. Thanks to that I got my hands on this gem of....mystery. flOw is a unique kind of game that won't tell you much through dialogue or text, but instead will tell you how to play it by simply exploring the game. However flOw is certainly not a game for everyone due to the game perhaps being overly-simplistic.
http://blogoehlert.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/flow.jpg
Most would say that flOw has no storyline but I beg to differ. The story consists of various types of plankton species. Each will eat each other for dominance over the ocean. You play as several types of advanced plankton, none of which have any formal names. Each type has it's own advantages, weaknesses, and unique look. The game never tells you this however as you are meant to figure out your creatures abilities and how to better utilize it to hunt down prey.
The creatures vary greatly but all follow the same control scheme. You use the SIXAXIS to move your creature and can use any button (save for start) to use your creatures power. The creatures move smoothly and the animation is simple but endearing. The powers themselves can consist of a speed boost, darting, poison, spinning, and a stalking strike. There are only five creatures and therefore a total of five campaigns. Each campaign consists of you guiding your creature through 15 layers of the ocean. Upon reaching the final layer there is an egg which unlocks the next creature.
Essentially then the gameplay simply consists of eating everything and anything. As you eat you grow your creature and gain more health. Your health bar consists of blue and red balls that are the makeup of your creature. The more you eat the more your creature evolves into larger and more spectacle forms, though this doesn't affect your skill in hunting in anyway, it's purely ascetic other than the boost in health. The art style is simplistic but beautiful. the background of the ocean, the various creatures, and what they evolve into all turn into works of art.
The sound also deserves a commendation. The tracks consist of ambient music that is rather sporadic and ethereal. The creatures make sounds much like the music when you are eating other creatures or are being eaten. The sound suits the game perfectly, to put it simply.
Another thing I'd like to mention is the lack of formal menus in the game. You are always in control of a creature, there is no pressing of X to start the game, just swim to the red circle to sink down into the campaigns and when you pause the game you are taken to a mesmerizing color layer of the ocean where you can put the control down and the creature moves on it's own. All you have to do to resume play is to start moving the creature down back to the layer that you were at. If you want to stop playing you can at anytime as the game seamlessly saves wherever you were in whatever campaign you were in.
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2008/05/prettyflowscreen.jpg
Okay, so do I get it?
Well, if you got it for free yesterday then I don't see why you wouldn't get it but if you didn't get it for free then the question turns into "Is it worth the 5 bucks?" The answer to that would be yes at the total package should last roughly 1:30 to 2 hours. With trophies that would bump it into perhaps 3 hours of total content. The main problem with flOw is the difficulty. You can't die, ever, if you lose all your health you simply fly up a layer in the ocean and are given 1 health back and lose your creature's size. If you enjoy a relatively relaxing yet mysterious experience then flOw is worth it. There's even an expansion that adds a new creature and the ability to take screenshots, priced at 3 bucks (I didn't buy it).
If you'd like to play my games well, just message me. They're free and I need players to provide feedback. I'll be using them for my portfolio later on to become a writer/developer for video games.
Thanks for reading!
http://blogoehlert.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/flow.jpg
Most would say that flOw has no storyline but I beg to differ. The story consists of various types of plankton species. Each will eat each other for dominance over the ocean. You play as several types of advanced plankton, none of which have any formal names. Each type has it's own advantages, weaknesses, and unique look. The game never tells you this however as you are meant to figure out your creatures abilities and how to better utilize it to hunt down prey.
The creatures vary greatly but all follow the same control scheme. You use the SIXAXIS to move your creature and can use any button (save for start) to use your creatures power. The creatures move smoothly and the animation is simple but endearing. The powers themselves can consist of a speed boost, darting, poison, spinning, and a stalking strike. There are only five creatures and therefore a total of five campaigns. Each campaign consists of you guiding your creature through 15 layers of the ocean. Upon reaching the final layer there is an egg which unlocks the next creature.
Essentially then the gameplay simply consists of eating everything and anything. As you eat you grow your creature and gain more health. Your health bar consists of blue and red balls that are the makeup of your creature. The more you eat the more your creature evolves into larger and more spectacle forms, though this doesn't affect your skill in hunting in anyway, it's purely ascetic other than the boost in health. The art style is simplistic but beautiful. the background of the ocean, the various creatures, and what they evolve into all turn into works of art.
The sound also deserves a commendation. The tracks consist of ambient music that is rather sporadic and ethereal. The creatures make sounds much like the music when you are eating other creatures or are being eaten. The sound suits the game perfectly, to put it simply.
Another thing I'd like to mention is the lack of formal menus in the game. You are always in control of a creature, there is no pressing of X to start the game, just swim to the red circle to sink down into the campaigns and when you pause the game you are taken to a mesmerizing color layer of the ocean where you can put the control down and the creature moves on it's own. All you have to do to resume play is to start moving the creature down back to the layer that you were at. If you want to stop playing you can at anytime as the game seamlessly saves wherever you were in whatever campaign you were in.
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2008/05/prettyflowscreen.jpg
Okay, so do I get it?
Well, if you got it for free yesterday then I don't see why you wouldn't get it but if you didn't get it for free then the question turns into "Is it worth the 5 bucks?" The answer to that would be yes at the total package should last roughly 1:30 to 2 hours. With trophies that would bump it into perhaps 3 hours of total content. The main problem with flOw is the difficulty. You can't die, ever, if you lose all your health you simply fly up a layer in the ocean and are given 1 health back and lose your creature's size. If you enjoy a relatively relaxing yet mysterious experience then flOw is worth it. There's even an expansion that adds a new creature and the ability to take screenshots, priced at 3 bucks (I didn't buy it).
If you'd like to play my games well, just message me. They're free and I need players to provide feedback. I'll be using them for my portfolio later on to become a writer/developer for video games.
Thanks for reading!