Ark: Little Gods [by Grim Inventions]

Game: Little Gods
Release Date: August 24, 2005
Genre: Arkanoid
Developer Company's Name: Grim Inventions
System Requirements for the Game: Windows 98/ME/XP, 800Mhz CPU (1.5ghz recommended), 32MB 3d video, 128MB system memory, Mac OSX
Players: 1-2
Price: $19.99
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We live in an age of mash-ups and remixes. Hip-hop has made sampling king and its hard to go a single day without hearing some pop track that's built its hook around a tune from ‘back in the day’. If music moves in cycles though, video games do so doubly, as virtually every game released can be called a direct homage to something that has come before it. However, hip-hop artists can't just rehash the same old songs, they need to spice them up with something fresh and bring their own unique flavor to the mix. That's just what Grim Inventions has done for classic gameplay with Little Gods.

Little Gods combines two giants of the gaming genre, Pong and Arkanoid and then throws in their own unique spice to the mix. The gameplay is simple enough on the surface. Using only the “W” and “S” keys to traverse vertically (Pong-style) players square off with either a computer opponent or a buddy. The points are awarded in the fashion of Pong, as well. Every ball that beats your paddle is a point for your opponent. After a certain number of points are accrued, the round is over. Each match consists of two rounds and at the end of each match the winner is rewarded with karma points that are dependent upon how well the player performed. Now, this is a two player game, but it could very easily be argued that the level is the third opponent, because trust me, it will be the doom of player one and player two alike.

The level design is where Arkanoid enters the mix and where the game really shines. While the player is attempting to protect his portion of the screen from the ever-bouncing ball, the level is always introducing new obstacles to the path of the ball. The bricks and other odds and ends that get in the way can be smashed with enough solid hits from your ball, and they will then frequently release items that can be grabbed to gain the upper hand. Bricks will release gobblers, which are little creatures that can be grabbed to earn points, and globs of mana in varying sizes. The fluid nature of each level will keep players on their toes almost constantly. Although on certain levels, once all the blocks have been destroyed, gameplay can crawl to a standstill.

Mana can be used as it is accrued to use various powers, or attacks, in the course of the game. This can complicate things heavily, as while the player is dodging up and down with “W” and “S', if they want to select a mana attack they need to choose it by scrolling with “A” and “D”, chose the attack with the space bar, then scrolling again with “A” and “D” to choose whether or not the attack will affect the balls, themselves or the opponent. For some, this could needlessly complicate the otherwise simple control scheme—but it definitely adds a level of strategy to the game.

These powers also add a level of replay value to the game. The karma awarded at the end of each round goes into a pool for the player. That karma can then be spent to unlock powers, different opponents, new levels and new gameplay modes. In addition to the very standard Pong gameplay, there's also a rapid attack mode where the points are lower but the balls are faster, a free power mode wherein your mana attacks are all free but you can only cast three at a time, and a sudden death mode that will test how many points the player can nab in one minute. These modes provide welcome variety to a game that could begin to stagnate once the player has unlocked all the other items.

Unlocking the items will take some time, however. Karma points are not handed out abundantly, and while purchasing skills and opponents is relatively cheap, purchasing new levels is not. There are a total of six environments to battle in, all rendered with beautiful background images, but each level has its own variety of Arkanoid block arrangements that will appear from round to round, meaning that while there are only six environments, there are many, many more levels. And since each arrangement tends to be highly mobile on its own, this ensures plenty of variety from moment to moment.

Gamers who are looking for something that stands apart from the all too common brick-busting PC game should come in search of Little Gods. The game has plenty of variety for replay value and personality to spare. This is one blending of styles that benefits from the heritage of both the progenitors, as well as the injection of youth given by Grim Inventions.

Graphics: +
The characters in Little Gods are cool little creatures that fit the game's cutesy-gothic style. Effects in the levels are nice as well, with some nice flames and explosions to accompany the shattering bricks. Level backgrounds are superbly rendered as well. Their abstract atmospherics aptly set the tone for each region, but aren't so flamboyant as to distract from the hectic action taking place in the foreground. What can be distracting, however, are the effects when you're picking your target and casting your mana spells. The halos that pop up around intended targets can be a little disorienting. Also, some of the special effects can overwhelm, especially if they're actively trailing 4 or more balls as they careen around the level.

Sound: +
The title music is an eerily lilting little tune that again complements the feeling of adorably goth little deities fighting it out. The soft wind sound effect on several of the levels is dead on, as well. It actually made me take off my headphones at one point so I could try to figure out whether it was coming from the game or not. All the in-game sound effects are nice and clear and, trust me, you'll learn to depend on them. All too frequently, you'll be so focused on trying to prevent yourself from being scored upon you'll never be able to look over and see if you've managed to put a ball past the opponent. Using the sound effects to distinguish the level of whooping you're giving your opponent is key. How far you're ahead will heavily influence how you use your powers.

Gameplay: +
At its core, Little Gods is a two button, one dimensional game and is a breeze to control. However, players can seize the upper hand by electing to call upon their mana powers and this can be a little trick to manage in the heat of battle. Frankly, it should be. What would Street Fighter 2 have been if Guile's Sonic Boom was a one-button move? The gamer that can juggle casting their spells and maneuvering their Little God can dish out much pain to their opponents. The inclusion of these powers adds a great level of depth to a game that could have left things entirely up to the timing and physics of a bouncing ball.

Value:  +
For $20, gamers get a nicely polished, fresh and quirky game that guarantees replay value through unlockable levels, powers, enemies and three additional gameplay modes. I say it's a steal.

Concept: +
If I could have weaseled the system to give Little Gods an 8.5, I think I would have. However, a tie goes to the runner in my book, so a 9 it is. Pong and Arkanoid are about as tired a gameplay concept as can be thought of. However, mixing the two up makes for a neat new game-system. Taking the standard Arkanoid style and adapting it to be something fluid and mobile, more like Breakquest, makes the gameplay even more fresh. Powers and game modes are just icing on the cake at this point.

Fun: +
Little Gods is a game that begs to be played. The core gameplay by itself is a blast, and when that's coupled with the number of un-lockables packaged into the game, it becomes an exceedingly hard product to walk away from.

Overall: "Buy"
Experimentation is not for everyone. Some people prefer their games pure and for those people, Little Gods will throw too much at them. However, gamers looking for a fresh take on an old standard with plenty of features and some great visuals should rush to the web to grab this gem.

Category Scoring Key:
+ Positively impacted score
= No effect on score
- Negative effect on score
Added: November 12th 2005
Reviewer: Michael Scarpelli
Score:
Hits: 3060
Language: english