(Disclaimer: This post is not my own. This is a repost from the official ilomilo developers on blog.ilomilo.com (only accessible on the wayback machine)!)
ilomilo at the Penny Arcade Expo
Monday, September 6th, 2010
IGN and 4playerpodcast played some ilomilo at the Penny Arcade Expo and here’s what they had to say about it:
“This gorgeous-looking puzzle game caught the eye of several bystanders while I sat by the kiosk, dragging them away from the more prominent Microsoft games so they can find out what the hell this adorable looking game is all about.”
-IGN
[NOTE FROM TESS: Pasting below as well for easy reading!]
While most of what Microsoft had at PAX was available to IGN earlier, they did have one small surprise: a playable demo of the upcoming XBLA/Windows Phone 7 game Ilomilo. This gorgeous-looking puzzle game caught the eye of several bystanders while I sat by the kiosk, dragging them away from the more prominent Microsoft games so they can find out what the hell this adorable looking game is all about.
The short answer is that Ilomilo is a puzzle game. The longer answer is that its a puzzle game that makes you think about perspective. Because each of the environments are made from various cubes, and because quite often the two titular characters (Ilo and Milo) can walk on multiple sides of the cubes, players have to think about how the world can be rotated so that the characters can successfully reunite with one another. This is further complicated in later levels through the introduction of blocks that the characters can carry (that also have their own unique traits such as collapsing and extending), making for levels that really tease your brain.
The basic stipulation for winning is easy enough to understand -- simply get the two characters next to one another -- but it is really challenging thanks to the variety of blocks the game introduces and because players have to switch between both characters to find success. Milo, for instance, might have access to a block that he can pick up and use as an extending bridge, which then could enable Ilo to proceed when the block acts as a column he can stand upon. Or perhaps Ilo would be trapped behind an apple block, conveniently located in a place where Milo could drop a block in place to allow the hungry animal to cross and consume Ilo's impediment... Confused? I completely understand; this is not a game that is easily described in words. Check out the video below for a more vivid demonstration. [NOTE FROM TESS: Link doesn’t work]
You see that? That is some crazy level design! But don't get scared of the difficulty, as Ilomilo ramps it up over time, introducing new elements to players at a rate that makes it easy to understand. This is true on both the mobile and XBLA versions of the game, too, despite their different levels.
Don't be sad that the games are different in level design between the two platforms, though, as this was done intentionally to take in the strengths of each. The XBLA one is played with a controller (of course), but the mobile one requires a touch sensitive screen, meaning that they had to design the game around very few interface options. Still, both are beautifully rendered in 3D, and, more importantly, have their own achievements so that hardcore nerds among us can get double the points for playing both.
“I feel I can predict with confidence that ilomilo is my PAX 2010 Game of Show. From what I was shown it’s got the gameplay, music, and style to be right up my alley.”
-4playerpodcast
[NOTE FROM TESS: Pasting below as well for easy reading!]
Yeah, it's only half way through Saturday but I'm calling it in early. There's still a few things I need to see first. For example, I'm in line for Duke Nukem Forever as I'm writing this. I just saw Portal 2's Co-Op Demonstration and I still need to take a look at Outland and Bastion.
Even so I feel I can predict with confidence that ilomilo is my PAX 2010 Game of Show. From what I was shown it's got the gameplay, music, and style to be right up my alley.
I mean seriously who makes a Co-op Turn Taking Puzzle Game these days. It's a little difficult to describe the types of puzzles the game provides but it looks like there is enough variety with it's enemy design and block types to keep the formula from staying too simple, a trend I've seen with a lot of recent puzzlers.
My only concerns are with the ways players will be presented with the more challenging levels. Many times objectives and abilities are not clearly explained, which is something I experienced during the demo. There were obstacles in which I had no idea how they would react to me or how I could interact with but I'm almost completely positive that is due to it being a quick demo experience and I do not expect that to be a problem when it releases later this winter.
I did feel though that the controls were a little rough. Movement didn't seem as smooth as I would have wanted and character switching may be something I just need to get used to.
Other than that, I'm extremely excited about getting my hands on this title and playing through it with a friend.
