Developer: Q-Games

Publisher: SCEA

Release Date: July 31, 2008

System: PS3

ESRB Rating: E

Official Web site

0:00 I've heard this game described as good but "hard to describe." Good thing I don't have to describe my experience playing it for the next hour or anything...

0:01 After adjusting the display size to my tiny SDTV and skipping through a 12-page license agreement, a title screen... grows. It's red and yellow silhouettes of flowing flowers amidst a black background. Ethereal synth music drones on behind.

0:02 Before I know it an extremely tiny gnome-like guy appears on the floor. I bring up the options screen and immediately gravitate to "How to Play."

0:03 "Eden is on an unknown garden. You use the oscillator to tune into other gardens which you can explore freely." Um... what? The game recommends an HDTV and headphones. THANKS FOR RUBBING IT IN, GAME!

0:04 So far, I've gathered that collecting floating Spectra, whatever they are, can make my home garden grow. "If the oscillator goes out of tune you will be ejected from the garden." Oh sure... who wants an out-of-tune oscillator in their garden? Not me!

0:05 The "basic gameplay" is based around releasing and collecting pollen to charge nearby "seeds," which then sprout into platforms, allowing you to climb further. This is some abstract stuff.

0:06 I can swing around the places I jump from with fragile "silk." How very "grappling beam."

0:08 I try to get a feel for the controls on the fully explorable menu screen. It's weird not being able to walk, but I can jump in any direction using the analog stick and face buttons. I'm already depressed by the lack of a double-jump, and the inability to send out more silk to continually swing through the air. Oh well... time to jump into the first level and figure this thing out.

0:09 "Welcome to your first garden. Numerous Spectra are hidden throughout this world. Seek out at least one Spectra to take back to your home garden." Spindly Blue palm fronds sprout up to my left and I jump on over. If I hold the jump button, I can spin through them instead of landing. It's hard to force myself not to hold the jump button.

0:11 Floating "pollen prowlers" can kill me if they touch me or my silk. That's all well and good, but "Pollen Prowlers"? Is that the best name they could come up with?

0:13 It's very, very hard to control the floaty jumps once I'm in the air. I have to plan my trajectory very carefully before taking off. I like being able to use my "silk" tether to collect floating pollen... makes precise jumping less important.

0:14 As I collect pollen, it floats to a floating blue "seed" area. Once I collect enough, it starts glowing. I jump in and it sprouts in an undulating curve of fronds. A satisfying rumble accompanies this growth.

0:16 My "oscillator" time meter is going down quickly, and the rejuvenating crystals seem in short supply. Maybe I'm just not looking in the right places? Meanwhile, I'm climbing ever higher using more pollen and newly growing plants. Once false jump, though, and I fall ... alllllllll the way back down. Blarg.

0:17 I accidentally returned to the main menu through the pause menu. No confirmation or anything. Lame. That's OK, though... those first few minutes were just practice.

0:20 I'm much more focused this time, exploring less and quickly collecting pollen more. The strict "oscillator" time limit has made me this way. Seems like a game that would do well with a timeless "exploration" mode.

0:22 I'm starting to get the hang of controls, especially the use ofsilk to collect stuff and propel myself ever higher. I still wish I could shoot silk in midair -- it would completely change the tenor of the game... in a good way. It would turn it into a completely different game.

0:23 I climb my way to the huge, glowing Spectra and collect it to finish the level. My score makes me 12,672nd in the world, but I can't tell what that score is based on, exactly.

0:24 I love the way the plants bend and sway as I stand on them. It's amazing how lifelike these silhouettes can be.

0:25 A blue, spindly stick with leaves on the end sprouts up in my "Eden," granting me access to Garden 02. This one is rendered in reds, with a more percussive feel to the music.

0:30 I like the way the collected pollen drifts over to the next nearby plant sprout -- helps prevent me from getting lost. I don't like how one false jump means falling all the way to the bottom. Yes, again.

0:31 I collect the second of 50 spectra and say goodbye to Garden 02 for now.

0:32 I didn't get access to a new garden this time -- the game tells me to find one of the many remaining spectra in Garden's 1 and 2. Why couldn't I get them when I was there before? Back to Garden 01, I guess.

0:34 Now that I know the level layout and controls a bit, I blaze a path to the first Spectra.

0:37 I know I sound like a broken record, but I'm getting REALLY tired of falling all the way to the bottom of the stage when I miss a jump by a hair's breadth. It would be REALLY nice to be able to correct my jumps in midair a bit more...

0:39 Grah. I fell again! For a game with such a relaxing motif, these controls make it pretty frustrating.

0:41 I finally work my way back up to collect the second Spectra, after getting close oh so many times. I'd almost prefer it if they let me keep exploring until I ran out of oscillator crystals. This constant kicking out to the menu feels like they're artificially lengthening the game a bit.

0:43 Back to Garden 02 for some variety. The way the plants grow and move is really astonishing -- like an art project come to life.

0:45 I find myself constantly wishing my silk line was just a little bit longer, or that I could jump just a little bit higher. I also wish I was a little bit taller, and that I was a baller, etc.

0:47 Work my way up to a misshapen rock. I can't attach silk to these, making it hard to guide my jumps even harder to guide. Grumble.

0:49 It takes me a looong time to collect the pollen I need to grow a plant off this floating rock. Without the silk, it's a very slow process.

0:51 So I've activated a nearby seed, but I miss the jump to it FOUR TIMES, climbing back from ground zero each time. Who thought making the jump controls so unforgiving would be fun?

0:55 The jump button is the same as the "spin through the plant platform you're trying to land on" button, so when I try to jump immediately after landing, I instead spin through and fall down to the ground yet again. AIEEEEE!

0:56 It seems I've forgotten where the first Spectra is, but I'm having a decent time just exploring looking for it. Too bad about that time limit...

0:58 Finally found it, right where I left it, among a rocky outcropping I had explored the other side of. I'm left wanting more...

Would I play this game for more than an hour? Yes.


Why? Despite some major control issues, it's a simple, beautiful, incredibly unique and relaxing platformer. Sign me up!

This column was based on a preview download of the game provided by the publisher.

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