Grokion/ Backbreaker
Publisher: Dodo Domination / Natural Motion
Developer: Dodo Domination / Ideaworks 3D
Style: Action-Platformer / Sports Challenge
Platforms: iPhone
Price: $1.19
Rating: Worth Getting / Stick to the lite version
Reviewer: Jemist / Torben
A common occurrence in this harsh gaming landscape is that of dying genres – primarily due to graphical innovations and technology more than anything else. I personally always lamented the death of the scrolling adventure platformer; think Metroid before 3D and Megaman before the 1000 spinoffs.
Grokion is a wonderful attempt at trying to recapture some of that Metroid vibe. You’re LDU-1, resurrected as a last line of defence from invading robots. At first glance, it definitely looks fantastic; 3D without being too overbearing, 2D without being lazy, and some smooth animation. What unfortunately quickly takes over is a somewhat unbalanced damage model. Getting killed by an exploding robot which you’ve just killed is definitely annoying, and happens all too frequently at the start. Add to this a less than stellar control system – pretty sure floating control sticks should be standard for most games by now, but alas.
If you’re dedicated enough, you get past those niggling issues, and are subject to a promising prospect for a continuing episodic iPhone series. The team behind the game seem dedicated enough about addressing those issues in inevitable updates, but we’ll see. This really does have me pining for an Oddworld series port to iPhone. Plzkthxbai.
***
Let me tell you a story; back in 2001 spirits were high after a couple of Oxford researchers had their pet project realised in the form of a fully fledged company. Known as NaturalMotion, they specialised in dynamically generating animations. It marked a new era, where games could finally offer truly unique playing experiences. The tech demos were awesome, the potential limitless. So… what happened?
Some say the technology was too awesome. Developers became caught up with the tech, obsessed even. Essentials like gameplay and control became neglected in its wake. Several major titles fell victim to this phenomenon; first there was Force Unleashed and then GTA 4. The latest is Backbreaker.
Indeed, whilst technologically impressive, Backbreaker suffers from a host of problems. The controls are unresponsive, particularly those on the left. The gameplay is shallow and repetitive. The in-game advertising is overbearing. Even the camera is placed so badly, you can barely see the very people you need to avoid.
So with time, hopefully we will finally be blessed with a developer capable of wielding the awesome power of NaturalMotion. Some even say that Rockstar may have already achieved this with Red Dead. Whatever your thoughts are, it’s safe to say that Backbreaker is pretty disappointing.
