Price: $7.99
Puddle (PS Vita) Review
Puddle released earlier this year for the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network, Ben had a chance to check the game out upon release (check out the full review here). In short, he loved it. The liquid base puzzler was a game he could “wholeheartedly recommend” and after playing the newly released version on the PlayStation Vita, I can agree.
What I Liked
The Control Options
The default is the rear touch pad and, quite frankly, it sucks. Being that all you do in the game is tilt the world in order for the liquid to gain momentum, the rear touch pad just doesn’t feel right. Luckily, you can switch to the analog sticks, shoulder buttons, and the motion sensor. Even though I found myself tilting the Vita during tense situations anyways, the shoulder buttons are the best option to go with.
It Feels Like A Vita Game
Puddle just feels like a PlayStation Vita game. The graphics look absolutely stunning on the giant PlayStation Vita screen and the usage of just two buttons feels more natural on the handheld, rather than a controller on a console. The cheaper $8 price tag (it’s $10 on consoles) means that you get to save a few bucks and the portability of the Vita means you can play a few levels at a time.
You Won’t Stay As One Liquid For Too Long
Rather than just having you play as a puddle of water throughout the entire game, the liquid you control changes up every few levels. Besides the water, you’ll have to guide fertilizer past dangerous plants, control the blood flow in the human body, a concocted fruit blend, and even the melted insides of a dead rat in one of the weirder sequences in video games.
What I Didn’t Like
You’re Just Controlling A Liquid
As fun, inventive, and fresh as Puddle can feel at times, you’re still just controlling a liquid for about 4 hours. The gameplay stays as a ’tilt-to-reach-the-end-of-the-level’ mechanic almost the whole way through and it does get old. The developers have created a very good game though, it just starts to wear on you if you sit down and try to finish it all at once.
It Can Be Too Difficult At Times
With so many hazards littered around pretty much every level, liquid eating plants or multiple fires, failing is going to come naturally. There is a ‘whine’ feature that allows you to skip really difficult levels, but it would have been nicer to see different difficulty settings mixed into the gameplay.
Comparison
Not as Good as: Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack
Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack is the best downloadable PSN title, and Puddle doesn’t quite match it. I recommend both of them quite highly, but if you only have $8 in your PSN wallet, Tales From Space is still the better option. Though if you have $16 kicking around, you’d be doing yourself a favour by picking up both.
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Final Word
If you missed out on Puddle earlier this year with the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, you need to buy this. The game fits perfectly on the handheld and if your Vita isn’t getting used through the dog days of summer, Puddle is the perfect game to get you to turn it back on again.
Puddle was reviewed with a copy provided by the publisher.
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BackerZ88
