Strange Attractors 2

I will admit, I’ve been pretty self gratifying recently. Tuesday I reviewed an RTS, and today is yet another of my beloved physics games. I promise, an FPS is in the future, but I need your recommendations. Combat Arms seems a tantalizing morsel, but MMOs don’t lend themselves well to reviewing. Imagine I am the unblinking eye of Sauron, searching the lands for the precious thing; a decent FPS. Even Sauron needs a little help from his friends sometimes. Go forth, my orcs. Find me a shooter worthy of Mordor. If you happen to find some hobbits and a gold ring in your search, those are mine too.
Strange Attractors 2 is, to be brief, refreshing and infuriating all in one. I’ve never seen such a simple game use it’s simplicity as a factor in its difficulty. In that, Ominous Development has created one of the most original and creative downloadables I’ve played in a long while. The game controls are comprised of two buttons. That’s it. The point is to navigate your spacecraft through a series of rooms, collecting stars as you go. It’s always stars. They never explain why you’re collecting stars, but they are necessary to your advancement. There are no engines in this craft. You control gravity. The problem, of course, is that there is no leveled use of said gravity. Gravity is either on or off, and the speed you attain is directly related to how close you are to an object and how large said object is. You may also toggle “anti-gravity” which drives you away from objects at the same relative velocity as the normal gravity pulls you toward them.



The reason I chalk the simplicity of the controls toward the games difficulty is how limiting and out-of-control gameplay is. Having no directional influence on your craft’s travel can get frustrating, but it forces you to think with gravity, as it were (to steal a Portal tagline). Manipulation of gravitational forces as a propulsion mechanism is very difficult to predict, but because of that, success is thoroughly gratifying. Using chains of pushes and pulls to orbit larger obstacles or send smaller objects crashing into you to create momentum creates the closest feeling to vertigo I’ve ever experienced in a game. You should also monitor your speed very closely. Faster is not always better in this game. When timing and positioning are crucial, it becomes very easy to inadvertently send yourself hurtling across the map.
The demo is very short. I only got about ten minutes of play-time out of my first run through, and that was with a complete lack of aptitude for the game. I chalk this up to the very reasonable price of the full version. Later on in the main game, however, you are introduced to Ominous’ warped sense of humor. Astronauts are unfortunate, doomed creatures in this world. Fodder for cheap giggles at their grisly ends, they accept their role in the game with near gleeful willingness.
Strange Attractors 2 is worth a look. At $10 over Greenhouse, it’s a low-risk game with a decent payoff. Mind-bending puzzles and decent graphics, merged with a spectacular concept and some cathartic chuckles add up to a game well worth the price. If you have a mind to buy a game, and only want to spend around 10 bucks, snap this one up before Ominous figures out their mistake and raises the price.
I know this was another short one, but I’m on vacation, and my wife is bugging me to let the work be. Forgive me for not visiting, San Francisco friends! Do the right thing, people. Play indie games. Revitalize the California state economy.