MrNinjaSquirrel
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If you took a platformer like Super Meat Boy, and a music game like Frequency, you'd have a basic jumping off point for Sound Shapes. Created by Quesy Games, Sound Shapes is something totally new. It takes my love of video games and music, and connects them in a way I've never seen before. Many were and still are skeptical of whether Sound Shapes could make this work, but after playing the game almost nonstop these past few days, I've had all my fears taken relieved. With an incredible soundtrack, great art design, and fun and accurate platforming, Sound Shapes is a game that shouldn't be missed!
Gameplay
Coming from an outside view, it's hard to understand why Sound Shapes is so great. Controlling a nameless ball, you make your way in traditional platformer fashion through the games levels. Your only notable ability is that you can stick to light colored objects. This might sound basic, but Quesy Game comes up with no end of clever uses that challenge and delight as you play the game. The controls are extremely slick, never once making you feel out of control, and allowing for pin point accurate jumps. All of this would make Sound Shapes a great game on it's own, though it would be hard pressed to stand out amidst the dozens of others. The real joy comes from how it integrates the gameplay so perfectly with the games soundtrack.
The game is split into several Albums, and these serve as the game's worlds. Each album is by a unique artist, ranging from Beck to Deadmau5. When you start a level, there is almost complete silence. As you progress, you collect notes which fill in the background and create an impressive assembly of sounds. This is the heart and soul of Sound Shapes. Collecting the notes and listening to the effect creates a feeling that's hard to describe. It feels like you're creating the music with the artist, putting together the pieces of the song one by one. You could skip these entirely and just play the game like a platformer, but that would be missing the point. Sound Shapes isn't about high scores or who has the fastest time; it's about the connection between the player and the music, something that no other game has done quite like Sound Shapes.
It probably won't take you a very long time to finish the games campaign, but afterwards there's still a ton to do. You unlock Beat School, a puzzle game that has you recreating a beat by placing notes on a board. It's a ton of fun, and I would be only to happy if they added more. Death Mode, as the name implies, is not for the faint of heart. The game even points this out, stating "Death Mode may melt your face". These levels put your skills to the test, as you try to collect a set number of notes before time runs out or you die. These will take you a long, long time if you set out to complete them all. And lastly, the game also includes a level editor. There are a lot of sounds and objects you can use, and you unlock more every campaign level you beat. It's very easy to use, and more creative people than I have made some truly awesome levels. I do wish they had copied LittleBigPlanet's tag system, as right now you can only sort by most popular, newest, and title. This isn't a deal breaker, but it would make finding levels a lot easier, and I hope to see it added sometime down the road.
Presentation
Sound Shapes looks deceptively simple. For the first couple levels, there isn't a whole lot going on, with mostly standard shapes and design for the levels. But it only takes a few more to see that Sound Shapes really is a work of art. Each level has it's own artist for both the art style and the music, and this makes the game feel continually fresh. The levels flow together like a dream concept album should, bleeding together and adding on with every new song. One of my biggest gripes though is that you can't just continue, instead being forced to the menu at the end of each level. This becomes annoying as the load time can be a bit long, and it seems a basic thing to include.
This might be one of my favorite video game soundtracks to date. These are just some lousy B-Side tracks, the artists really went above and beyond creating their contributions to the game. They're immediately recognizable when you start a level, and I would say that if your a fan of any of the artists in the game, it's worth picking up just to hear the music. It really is that good. Sound Shapes biggest problem though is that the tracks will often skip. This is most apparent when you die, happening regularly enough that it can't be passed off as fluke. This took me out of the experience each and every time, and it's a real shame. I'm not sure how much can be fixed with a patch, but this really needs to be fixed.
Verdict
Sound Shapes is a game that has to be played to understand it's greatness. Watching a video doesn't give you the same feeling as when you're actually playing the game, collecting notes and building a song. The platforming is a ton of fun on it's own, and coupled with the soundtrack and artwork it becomes truly extraordinary. It also has a ton of replay value with the extra modes and community levels. Sound Shapes is the complete package. It has some technical problems, most notably a jumpy record, but aside from that I really can't find any major faults to be had. Quesy Games has made something truly special, something that transcends video games, becoming an entirely new and unique way to experience music that everyone owns it to themselves to try.
Final Opinion: 9.5/10 Incredible!
Please note, this review is of the PS3 version of the game, and does not reflect the quality or content of the PS Vita version.
If you took a platformer like Super Meat Boy, and a music game like Frequency, you'd have a basic jumping off point for Sound Shapes. Created by Quesy Games, Sound Shapes is something totally new. It takes my love of video games and music, and connects them in a way I've never seen before. Many were and still are skeptical of whether Sound Shapes could make this work, but after playing the game almost nonstop these past few days, I've had all my fears taken relieved. With an incredible soundtrack, great art design, and fun and accurate platforming, Sound Shapes is a game that shouldn't be missed!
Gameplay
Coming from an outside view, it's hard to understand why Sound Shapes is so great. Controlling a nameless ball, you make your way in traditional platformer fashion through the games levels. Your only notable ability is that you can stick to light colored objects. This might sound basic, but Quesy Game comes up with no end of clever uses that challenge and delight as you play the game. The controls are extremely slick, never once making you feel out of control, and allowing for pin point accurate jumps. All of this would make Sound Shapes a great game on it's own, though it would be hard pressed to stand out amidst the dozens of others. The real joy comes from how it integrates the gameplay so perfectly with the games soundtrack.
The game is split into several Albums, and these serve as the game's worlds. Each album is by a unique artist, ranging from Beck to Deadmau5. When you start a level, there is almost complete silence. As you progress, you collect notes which fill in the background and create an impressive assembly of sounds. This is the heart and soul of Sound Shapes. Collecting the notes and listening to the effect creates a feeling that's hard to describe. It feels like you're creating the music with the artist, putting together the pieces of the song one by one. You could skip these entirely and just play the game like a platformer, but that would be missing the point. Sound Shapes isn't about high scores or who has the fastest time; it's about the connection between the player and the music, something that no other game has done quite like Sound Shapes.
It probably won't take you a very long time to finish the games campaign, but afterwards there's still a ton to do. You unlock Beat School, a puzzle game that has you recreating a beat by placing notes on a board. It's a ton of fun, and I would be only to happy if they added more. Death Mode, as the name implies, is not for the faint of heart. The game even points this out, stating "Death Mode may melt your face". These levels put your skills to the test, as you try to collect a set number of notes before time runs out or you die. These will take you a long, long time if you set out to complete them all. And lastly, the game also includes a level editor. There are a lot of sounds and objects you can use, and you unlock more every campaign level you beat. It's very easy to use, and more creative people than I have made some truly awesome levels. I do wish they had copied LittleBigPlanet's tag system, as right now you can only sort by most popular, newest, and title. This isn't a deal breaker, but it would make finding levels a lot easier, and I hope to see it added sometime down the road.
Presentation
Sound Shapes looks deceptively simple. For the first couple levels, there isn't a whole lot going on, with mostly standard shapes and design for the levels. But it only takes a few more to see that Sound Shapes really is a work of art. Each level has it's own artist for both the art style and the music, and this makes the game feel continually fresh. The levels flow together like a dream concept album should, bleeding together and adding on with every new song. One of my biggest gripes though is that you can't just continue, instead being forced to the menu at the end of each level. This becomes annoying as the load time can be a bit long, and it seems a basic thing to include.
This might be one of my favorite video game soundtracks to date. These are just some lousy B-Side tracks, the artists really went above and beyond creating their contributions to the game. They're immediately recognizable when you start a level, and I would say that if your a fan of any of the artists in the game, it's worth picking up just to hear the music. It really is that good. Sound Shapes biggest problem though is that the tracks will often skip. This is most apparent when you die, happening regularly enough that it can't be passed off as fluke. This took me out of the experience each and every time, and it's a real shame. I'm not sure how much can be fixed with a patch, but this really needs to be fixed.
Verdict
Sound Shapes is a game that has to be played to understand it's greatness. Watching a video doesn't give you the same feeling as when you're actually playing the game, collecting notes and building a song. The platforming is a ton of fun on it's own, and coupled with the soundtrack and artwork it becomes truly extraordinary. It also has a ton of replay value with the extra modes and community levels. Sound Shapes is the complete package. It has some technical problems, most notably a jumpy record, but aside from that I really can't find any major faults to be had. Quesy Games has made something truly special, something that transcends video games, becoming an entirely new and unique way to experience music that everyone owns it to themselves to try.
Final Opinion: 9.5/10 Incredible!
Please note, this review is of the PS3 version of the game, and does not reflect the quality or content of the PS Vita version.
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