I love my MacBook Pro. Every weekend I perform a ritual of deleting junk files, running antivirus software, and clearing old caches to ensure it runs at peak performance. However after playing And Yet It Moves for a few hours, I wanted to throw my beautiful Mac against the wall out of sheer frustration. And yet despite the rage, I couldn’t manage to tear myself away. Call me a masochist, but I honestly think AYIM may be one of the best games I have ever played.
AYIM starts off in very familiar form. You begin your adventure in a two dimensional scrap paper world where everything, including your character, looks as if it were ripped out of the pages of a book. You move your character with the WASD keys and are given the simple task of reaching the end of the level in traditional platformer fashion. However you’ll quickly learn that running and jumping is not enough to make it to the end, and this is where AYIM separates itself from the pack.
Instead of simply controlling your character, you also can control the world. By pressing the arrow keys, you are able to rotate the world around your character. Does the floor stop but the ceiling continues onward? Just rotate the world upside-down and walk across the ceiling! It’s a simple concept and AYIM utilizes it to its fullest potential. After a few minutes of playing you’ll quickly learn that this is no run-of-the-mill platformer. AYIM is from the new surge of independent puzzle/platformer games lead by the recent success of the Xbox Live Arcade hit Braid.
New games in this indie genre are often defined by their unique controls and artwork, and AYIM does not disappoint in either regard. The game’s mechanics are simply perfect. Every jump feels solid and the world rotation is quick and easy to control for the high precision maneuvers you’ll have to perform as the game progresses. AYIM also boasts a superb difficulty curve that gradually introduces players to new gameplay elements, ultimately leading to a satisfying crescendo at the game’s finale. Of course I found moments of sheer frustration as I tried the same jump for the hundredth time, but with victory always just out of reach, I couldn’t help but try time and time again. AYIM also offsets the difficulty by placing checkpoints after nearly every crazy act of coordination, so I never needed to fear beating that impossible puzzle again.
The artwork and music of AYIM are beyond anything I’ve ever experienced in a game before. The ripped paper artwork is absolutely original. It’s refreshing to see a game break out from the norm and provide an inventive and artistic world to enjoy without the need of hundreds of programmers normally mapping everything. Many times I found myself ignoring the next ridiculous acrobatic act and just wandering about, watching the scenery, and relaxing. As AYIM progresses, the scenery gradually changes from a dull, brown land to a (for lack of a better phrase) psychedelic wonderland where one can’t help but stop and question what was just in their drink. The music also follows this trend of progression by beginning with quiet ambience and ends with odd and experimental pieces that integrate perfectly with the world. Both of these aspects add depth to AYIM and really make it stand out from the pack.
Despite all of its pros, AYIM does have a few cons. The story line is nonexistent; you’re simply thrown into this mystery world without even a single textbox to answer why. I personally love games that let the player’s imagination create the story, but this is clearly not for everyone. Puzzle games also usually suffer from a lack of replayability. AYIM tries to remedy this by offering a challenge mode where you can replay any level while being timed, changing it from a puzzle to a racing game. Your times are recorded on online leaderboards, so you can see exactly where you stand in the world. You can also view other people’s runs to find the fastest route through each level. In theory this racing aspect should increase the longevity of AYIM and keep you playing for weeks to come. Having said that, I find the timed runs to be very tense and frustrating which may lead to few broken Macs if you lack the required patience. I almost bashed a hole through my MacBook Pro’s keyboard after missing my fastest time on a 20 minute level by 0.1 seconds. And yet after swearing up a storm that would make Samuel L. Jackson blush, I sat back down started to play it yet again. No matter what the flaws, I could never seem to tear myself away from such a great game.
Despite its negatives, AYIM’s sheer uniqueness and low price of $15 render these small flaws irrelevant. If you enjoy puzzle games and/or are interested in seeing exciting new ideas within gaming, take a look at AYIM. Certainly at times you’ll curse the heavens above as you miss that jump for the twentieth time. If you however have the patience to push forward, you will find a deeply rewarding game that should be on everyone’s top 10 list.
Play Bmx Games okay?