PSN Demo Impressions – Pixel Junk Eden
Well it’s time for another Impressions Article by me guys. This time it will be PixelJunk Eden that I am analyzing for you all. I have been playing the demo a lot, almost non stop since it was released. I keep finding myself comng back to this simple yet innovative title. The demo is a lot more robust than I thought it would be. I’ve been playing for quite some time and I just finished the 1st garden completely. Granted I was messing around for a bit, and also trying to get the handle on the controls. But the demo could almost be a full game in it’s own right, and one that I would have happily been willing to pay for. I can’t even imagine how much time I will throw away in the full game. Alright so down to the nitty gritty, the likes/dislikes of the game, and then I will tell you whether or not I think the final game is worthy of a purchase on day one.
What I Liked:
- -The Graphics—the overall look of this game I absolutely love. The artistic feel for the game still has me just staring in awe as the music is playing. In fact as I write this review I have it on the main menu and I am staring at the demo being played out.
- -The Music—hands down it pulls you in as you are playing and just flows with the game. Probably better than most games that I have seen.
- -Level Design—this game institutes a great cause and effect style of gameplay. You must do a number of steps to get higher and higher in the level. Also there are several things to do out of caution in case you fall from the top. If you took the time to develop some of the smaller “branches” you might be able to grab onto one. If not, enjoy the long fall. Even the main menu has a great design in the way that the garden builds itself as you complete more and more levels.
- -Controls—while I hated them at first to be honest I have grown to love them and realize how good they are. It takes time to get used to them though, I’m not gonna lie. But they are so intuitive once you get the handle for the game.
- -The Creatures—haha yes this is something I liked. I don’t know what they are, but for some reason they have the same charm as Sackboy on me. You can’t help but crack a smile when you look at them.
What I Disliked:
- -Nothing—you got it. I said nothing. I have never said that on a game. I have never said that with anything really. There is not one thing I would change about this game so far. There were things I had to adapt to such as the controls, but I was able to adapt with ease. That was the only thing that caused a problem with me.
Undecided:
- -Long Falls—while I know this is the players fault, I have to put something here, and this is the only part of the game that was getting on my nerves. Maybe it’s because I’m still kind of new to the title and haven’t judged jumps correctly. But it seems as if there were times where I would jump and right when I would get to the branch it would sway in the wind away from my creature. Then I fell for a long time, and when I say long I mean a LONG way down.
Purchase/Rent/Stay Away: I have never played a game with this much charm and just left me having as much good fun when I put the controller down. When I say good fun I mean it in a different way, so let me explain. You remember when you were a kid and you played a game that just had you grinning from ear to ear because it was that much fun. Well as I (atleast me at times, so I don’t know if I’m speaking for everyone) have grown older I find myself at times not enjoying a game as much because I look for flaws so much more now. Maybe because I am becoming older, or maybe because I am forcing myself to look for flaws because I review. Well this is a game that has not done that to me. I can’t find flaws in it. I have enjoyed every minute of it and loved it. It’s almost as if this game has reached my inner child as corny as that sounds. Because it is just plain fun. Buy this at release, and I guarantee you that you will not be disappointed in any way.
No Responses to “PSN Demo Impressions – Pixel Junk Eden”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
July 25th, 2008 at 2:47 PM
Lol I found a way to speed up the long falls. Jerk your controller down and it will cause your character to fall suddenly. Often it will cause you to land on some plant you would have missed if you just let the game physics take you all of the way down.
July 25th, 2008 at 2:50 PM
Haha thanks for the heads up Chris.
July 25th, 2008 at 2:50 PM
I could not agree with you more on this. I initially had a little problems with the controls (didn’t like always spinning a silk) it actually grew on me a lot. I think they made some very wise decisions with the overly simplistic controls, and the semi-tutorial while playing was a nice touch too.
I have a slightly different opinion on the falls though. As you said it’s the players fault, and the Devs can’t anticipate all of our faults. But I quickly realized that even if you fall from the highest point in the first garden it takes very little time to get back up to the top, even less so if you memorize the level layout and can place yourself to fall on a lower lying plant.
At first I only wanted the game because of Trophies, but after playing it for well over 5 completions I have to take that back. Eden would warrant a purchase even if it had no Trophies, Trophies are just icing on the cake.
July 25th, 2008 at 2:52 PM
nice tip Chris, I was wondering how to do that. They showed that in the YouTube videos that Dylan C. posted on the PS.Blog and I couldn’t figure out how to do it. (Side note: It’s a good way to kill enemies.)
July 25th, 2008 at 3:12 PM
I like the game, but I am having a lot of problems with the controllers; I hadn’t even finished the first garden. I can’t seem to find the crystal or whatever I am looking for.
July 25th, 2008 at 3:14 PM
if you hold down it seems to effect the wya you land…so you cause the branches to bend then you can “spring” back up to hit other things
July 25th, 2008 at 3:36 PM
Yea, if you hold any direction with the control stick you effectively aftertouch the way you are moving. And holding down basically pushes you downward with a little more speed, which depending on where you land can springboard you pretty high.
July 25th, 2008 at 3:40 PM
I played the demo for around two hours yesterday, as well (until the game locked me out) and I’ll definitely be buying it as soon as it’s released on the EU store. I’m sure the full game will be a lot of fun – and it seems pretty likely we’ll get an expansion at some point to get even more time out of it. I can’t wait to see the next idea in the Pixeljunk series.
July 25th, 2008 at 4:41 PM
CONTROLS:
So you can pull your silk in, is there any way to let some of it out?
– Shake sixaxis down to launch downwards, I think you can also just hold down, but probably doesn’t go as fast.
– Keep spinning if you don’t want to connect to plants.
any other controls or tips i didn’t know about?
what button does YouTube recording?
July 25th, 2008 at 5:01 PM
- While spinning you also draw nearby pollen to you.
- After a x5 Pollen multiplier enemies will also start dropping Crystals.
- If you can open 2 or more buds before landing on a branch they will also release crystals.
July 25th, 2008 at 5:11 PM
I don’t think there is a way to release the silk SS. Also the YouTube recording is only in final release from what I hear.
July 25th, 2008 at 5:52 PM
this game rocks and I will be purchasing it when it releases soon.
July 25th, 2008 at 6:06 PM
Any word on the cost when it releases?
July 25th, 2008 at 6:25 PM
I have yet to hear anything, but I would assume that it would be $9.99.
July 25th, 2008 at 8:24 PM
U can release the silk by tapping x, or any other button, while you are spinning around.
I absolutely fell in love with this game as soon after 15-20 minutes. Learning the controls took a few minutes, but after that, i was mezmorized, as were the other people watching me play it. Definately a day one purchase.
July 25th, 2008 at 9:02 PM
99.9999999% of games like this are 9.99 on release. Why do people ask? Why do people assume it will be any different? It never makes sense to me.
July 25th, 2008 at 9:30 PM
Prolo I think when he said “release” he was referring to making more come out therefore in you having a larger spin area when spinning in circles.
July 25th, 2008 at 11:51 PM
It’s an interesting game. I had a lot of fun with the demo, but I probably won’t buy it. Only because of the game logo at the bottom of the screen. It would cause a “burn-in”, ruining the Tv. I turned down the brightness, but it would still happen.
July 26th, 2008 at 12:13 AM
@OldBloodAndGuts
I think I remember seeing something in options about Burn In Protection or something like that.
July 26th, 2008 at 2:00 AM
OK thanks, BigPete… I’ll check it out the next time I play it.
July 26th, 2008 at 7:55 PM
This game is GREAT, art, music, remote play! The only thing you can not do on the PSP in remote play is the spike move, but I am talking to the developers on playstation blog about this hopefully in a patch. This is a great game, oh and yes Bigpete there is burn in protection in the options. Can’t wait for the full game!
July 26th, 2008 at 10:50 PM
If you hold any of the shoulder buttons you can reel in the silk.
July 27th, 2008 at 4:02 AM
I will be purchasing this game as well. By the way, are the PSN cards finally in stores? Anywhere I could find some?
July 28th, 2008 at 2:57 AM
@ NooMoahk
I haven’t seen them, but I have heard of some people having them around in their local stores. But I’m in Texas, and have yet to see one at all.
July 28th, 2008 at 7:26 PM
can anybody explictly layout the control schemes for the game?
the objective of the game?
I played it for 2 mins just jumping side ways, knowing nothing,
August 5th, 2008 at 2:56 PM
I’m totally addicted to the game. One of the most original games in the last 15 years! I’m buying it for sure! Thank you Pixel Junk!
August 5th, 2008 at 2:59 PM
Vipul.. The objective is to reach the “spectras” on the top.. To get to them you have to destroy those pollen balls so it will “feed” the spots and then your grimp will be able to jump on it and make it grow plantas or whatever and you’ll be able to climb. Well.. is kind of something like that..