Review 11 - Brian Doyle - Audiosurf
From DIT Experimental Gaming Group
Audiosurf is a music-based rhythm/puzzle game developed by BestGameEver (Dylan Fitterer) and distributed trough Valves Steam digital distribution platform since February 15th 2008. It has received high critical praise for it's fun gameplay and near-endless replayability as a result the games use of the users audio files to generate the tracks in which the user plays.
Contents |
Gameplay
The idea behind audiosurf is simple, the player controls a 'ship' as it travels along a 3(or 6) lane music-generated track, collecting coloured blocks in adjoining sets of 3 or more in order to score points. However the means of achieving this goal differs greatly depending on the character you select as well as the difficulty level. If a player fills up a column of their collection grid without an active match, they are penalised by becoming invisible, rendering them unable to collect any blocks until the respawn timer is up, all the while they continue to run trough the track.
In casual(easy) mode the 'traffic' or level of block density is the lightest, tracks are easier to navigate and 2 blank lanes are available either side to allow the player passage without hitting unnecessary blocks. In non-mono modes, there are only 3 different block colours to collect.
In pro(medium), the lane structure is the same as casual, however there is increased traffic and more colours to collect.
Elite(hard) is the most congested difficulty, with more colours to match and no side lanes to escape to.
Characters
There is a wide variety of characters that are available, each catering to different styles of play.
- Mono - The first of the mono classes, there are only 2 types of block on the track, grey blocks and coloured ones. The objective is to avoid as many greys while collecting coloured ones, the value of each coloured block increases the longer you go without hitting a grey block. This mechanic completely changes the game compared to other characters. Available in Casual(Easy), Pro(Medium), or Elite(Hard) Mode.
- Pointnman - Can hold onto desirable blocks or powerup blocks in order to add them at a more desirable time. (Available at all difficulty levels)
- Double-Vision - A character that has 2 ships that run along individual 3 lane strips, one controlled by the mouse, the other by the arrow keys. This allows for local 2 player or challenging single player. Available at all difficulty levels. (Available at all difficulty levels)
- Pusher - This character manipulates incoming blocks by pushing them into adjacent columns in order to achieve combos. (Pro or Elite)
- Eraser - Allows the player to Remove all instances of a selected colour from the collection grid in order to clear build-up or allow for a larger combo of another colour.
- Vegas - Can randomly reshuffle the collection grid in the hopes that a more favourable layout can be achieved, I find this a little unreliable as a useful ability.(Pro Only)
Controls and Levels
The controls of the game are very basic, the player can either navigate the lanes by pressing the arrow keys or by moving the mouse left or right (as stated, both in the case of double-vision), making it very accessible to just about everyone. (Players can also edit the environment and block colours to match their liking, accommodating those who may have distinguishing the default palate)
Levels are generated from the audio files stored on the players hard drive, making the possibilities near-endless. The game analyses the file and creates a track with pacing and block density that correlates with the sound of the file, less intense music will allow for a more relaxed uphill track, very 'busy' and hectic music will result in a more extreme downward sloping track, allowing you to play to suit your mood.
Steam & Scoreboards
Audiosurf was the first game ever to utilise Valves free Steamworks publishing suite, the game also comes with the soundtrack to Valves Orange box, featuring the legendary closing song for portal 'Still Alive', the rest of the soundtrack is also well worth a listen, it's inclusion makes the whole deal sweeter.
Scores are tracked via the in-game scoreboard, which has the ability to show you the top 10 scores of each difficulty level based on overall, local and friends scores, strangely enough you cannot use your steam ID for this but rather you have to sign up independently via the game or games website itself. Oh, if you hold a top score and somebody beats it, you are notified via the e-mail you signed up with, this can happen at any moment, so if you are competitive you might not want to use your main email.
My Impressions
This is a dangerous game indeed, it has a hazardous mixture of 'The Tetris effect' and 'One more turn' syndrome, all while allowing you to listen to your favourite music. Breaking down the levels into song-sized bites makes it all too easy to play 'just' another track, and being promptly informed that your top score was beaten will easily drag you right back into the game. It will also have an effect on any and all music you listen to as you start to imagine how it will play in-game. (Well, that may just be me).For such a fun and simply played game, it has an incredible amount of possibility, making it more than worth the 10 dollars it cost.
Gameplay footage
Mono - Elite.
You wouldn't get this from any other game.
Pusher - Elite
Proving itself a substantial challenge in guitar hero, Through the Fire and Flames has become a fan favourite track, highly popular and hotly contested on top 10 rankings, with top elites pushing past the 1 million point mark.
This is an excellent example of how the pace and beat of a song translates into the track.
