Age of Aquaria

by ERIK LEIJON

One of last year’s most curious releases was the Nintendo Wii title Endless Ocean—a relaxing underwater exploration game with rudimentary controls, completely ambiguous missions usually pertaining to groping marine life and a new age soundtrack no less offensive than the calm depths of the sea.

Unfortunately, the game was ugly as sin and not particularly fun to play, but Ocean’s unlikely existence hinted at a potentially exciting new genre in gaming: the intentionally unexciting exploration game (the marketing dept. might want to come up with a sexier name). Aquaria (PC, Mac/Bit Blot) is an indie 2D side-scroller similarly set underwater, and while there is quite a bit of action, the game blends it with tranquil moments as well.

Originally released in 2007 but only recently made available on Macs and the Steam download service, Aquaria offers players the opportunity to either play the game in your typical macho, shoot-everything-that-moves style, or to enjoy the soothing sounds of the abyss, absorb the beautiful visuals and interact with various hostile and non-hostile creatures.

Starring a water nymph suffering from amnesia, deep-sea-dwelling Naija patrols the ocean environments best described as a more open version of Ecco the Dolphin. The clean, striking visuals really suit the game well, featuring animated sprites, distinctive colour schemes for each stage and good lighting effects. The main character is controlled with a mouse and keyboard set-up, and her primary mode of interaction is through colour-coordinated sounds she can produce to musical effect. The songs she learns throughout allow her to perform special moves and, more importantly, alter her form to better suit combat situations.

Much like the heralded indie games World of Goo and Braid, Aquaria simply provides a unique blend of moments rarely seen from mass-market titles. That’s not meant to be a slight on big budget games, but there’s something about the homebrewed nature and aesthetic that grabs gamers through gameplay rather than immersion.

That being said, the thinking man’s puzzles are similar to Braid’s deceptively simple levels, and all these indie games have an affinity for 2D graphics and old time sprites. Aquaria’s leisurely pacing and lack of constant action certainly feels strange in the early going—and unlike most other titles with clear goals and hordes of enemies, there’s an occasional sense that you’re accomplishing nothing—but Aquaria gradually builds into a more traditional side-scroller with numerous obstacles and tricky boss sequences. In a year where indie games will likely find their marketplace, Aquaria is the kind of unique brand capable of carving its niche as a game played at a different speed.

Warriors return

Although I mentioned it briefly last month, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix (XBLA, PSN/Capcom) is still taking up much of my time, which has only exacerbated the positive and negative aspects of the brawler. As cool as it is to replay the 1994 classic with hi-def, superbly animated, comic-book-worthy graphics, the XBox 360 gamepad absolutely blows when it comes to 2D fighters.

As someone who nearly cracked the same controller during a particularly frustrating Street Fighter III session on GameTap, I knew what was coming, but it’s remarkable how shoddy tools can adversely affect even the most bulletproof of games. That being said, it’s still worth trudging along using the analog stick.

It should also be mentioned to any wayward soul looking for something to protest: the U.S. Army has announced that America’s Army 3, the third game designed to promote recruitment through simulated killing/training, will be invading your PC later this year. Today’s word of the day: “militainment.”