Revolve review

REVOLVE

Always nice to see a game from Belgium, especially if it has a pretty original take on gameplay ideas. Revolve is a physics based 2D platformer that requires some patience, skill and a little bit luck. A fun mix that kept me intrigued for quite some time.  Reading the rest of the review is easier than using Revolve’s four movement actions so here we go!

THE GOOD

  • Four movement actions? Controlling your character (or car to be more precise) isn’t done by direct control. You use the gravity to make your way around the levels. Boosting, jumping, braking and timing your actions is all that you need to do. It is one hell of a task to survive and complete all levels though, so don’t expect a walk in the park with lovely birds flying around. The challenge and in general the way how you play Revolve is really addictive and fun, I can’t remember playing something like this before.
  • It has an easy concept but I have to admire the developer for his excellent level design. Truly something special, despite the fact that I had to force a restart sometimes because movable items got stuck I loved how everything was perfectly set-up.
  • Levels are never long making it a perfect game to play in short bursts. You will be replaying specific levels a few times though, when you die you have to start over. That can be a little frustrating but that’s how Revolve works, at the same time this also increases that “just one more time” feeling. Let us be honest, we both know that “just one more” means playing two hours straight.
  • I love creative games and Revolve scores high in this department. I personally haven’t played something similar, Reminder: I only play on consoles, so it was great to see something new like this on Xbox.
  • For a game that so strongly relies on physics the developer had to make sure that it would work like expected. And… they totally nailed it. The weight, distance between gravity switches and slowing or speeding all works beyond fine. I’m pretty sure this was a hair pulling task for Rusty Bolt, monumental work!

MIXED FEELINGS

  • The outer space/industrial visuals work for the game but I wish it had a little bit more variety. Each level has a darkness filter that I kinda loved and hated at the same time. Some kind of drastic switch in looks would have been welcome.
  • Dying twenty times on one specific part isn’t a rare thing in Revolve. So if you hate to replay a level over and over again this isn’t a game for you.

THE BAD

  • Most of the movement puzzles require lots of skill, becoming near mental towards the end. This is my one and only complaint about Revolve, not the difficulty but the fact that it is heavily luck-based.

Revolve shines in his simplicity and outstanding gameplay, the trial and error gameplay isn’t for everyone but I had lots of fun with it.