Welcome everybody to the first of a new series of articles on XboxLiveArcade.com called "Games You Might Have Missed". In this feature we will be focusing on XBLA games that have been released and may for whatever reason have been passed over or seemingly forgotten.
Originally released for the PSP in 2005 and making its way onto the XBLA in 2007: To get the ball rolling we have the Ubisoft Published and Taito developed action puzzler: EXIT.
The aim of the game in EXIT is just about as simple as it gets, you just need to get to the exit at the end of the level. You take control of Mr. ESC (Mr. Escape) a professional yellow fedora wearing, red scarf toting escapologist, who gets thrown head first into a variety of life threatening situations.
Simply put, you need to guide Mr. ESC through a 2d world from start to finish. However in his way there are many obstacles that need to be overcome, jumps, locked doors, fires etc. Of course it doesn't stop there; he is not the only one in these situations! Being the upstanding gent that he is, Mr. ESC can't just leave people behind, so you need to get these people out as well.
They fall into 4 categories:
Children: Can’t climb or climb down from places, but can crawl through small spaces
Young Adults: Fit health young folk who can assist Mr. ESC in several Tasks.
Adults: Can push large objects on their own, but struggle to climb
Injured: These people need to be carried or placed onto a bed and pushed.
These different people add a whole new layer of complexity into the game as Mr. ESC can order them to move places independently, perform actions, pick up items or assist him if need be in order to get everybody to the exit within the time limit. Sometimes this may just be having people follow Mr. ESC, sometimes they need to help him out to make actions go faster, or the most devious of the lot having to have both Mr. ESC and the survivors performing actions simultaneously.
Now as stated earlier the game is split into situations, 22 in total, which each comprise of 10 levels. Now with a bit of basic math you may have worked out that totals a monstrous 220 levels!
These start out real easy, steadily ramping up in difficulty to some serious brain benders! This is all well and good, but even on the easier levels you need to keep your wits about you; push that box too far, slide down that rope or use a fire extinguisher in the wrong place and you need to go all the way back to the beginning. This is no bad thing! Frustrating at times? You betcha', but it makes you think!
The thing that seemingly polarises most people when it comes to this game is the movement speed, controls and to some extent the AI. It is at times a painfully slow game, in which you end up thinking to yourself why the hell can't they hurry up. But this serves the purpose or running down the clock adding the smallest bit of panic into your gameplay. The controls can feel a little clunky and sluggish at times, which is compounded by the fact that to do actions. I.e. climb stairs you need to stop completely, press up, wait for him to climb the stairs completely and come back into the gaming plane before you can carry on. The AI also sometimes struggle and get a bit stuck or don’t follow you properly, requiring you to go back to get them to do it right. How you feel about all the above will depend entirely on what type of gamer you are; the game mechanic will annoy some, others will love it and to be honest I think the majority of puzzle fans would fall into the latter category.
Aiding in your engrossment into the game is the artistic styling. Style wise you are going to find it hard not to like it. It's colourful, beautifully cell shaded, and the animations are smooth and realistic. The music is good and upbeat, but still conveys as sense of urgency (you are working against a clock after all). The sound effects, the vocals from both Mr. ESC and the survivors can get a tiny bit irritating after a while, but they do serve a purpose in telling you if the survivors come across something impassable.
In conclusion, EXIT is a great game, well thought out, presented and executed; and all it is very inventive. When you look at the amount of design and thought in the levels you are amazed especially with the later ones. But then you spot a flaw, or what you think is one until you realise they intentionally put that ladder next to that ledge, so once you fall off it you can't climb back onto it and you can’t help but admire the brilliance. It is fun and will really put your brain to the test, forcing a sweat from even the most experienced and creative of puzzle gamers at times. Not for everyone, but if you are a puzzle fan, an absolute must buy!
Gameplay - 7.5: Great level design, crossing platforming and puzzling with a bit more emphasis on the puzzle. However the speed the game plays at will be a love it or hate it kind of thing. Does get a little samey though
Graphics - 8.0: Really colourful and well animated. Unique looking to the point where you will struggle not to like it
Sound - 8.0: Captures the spirit of the game in the music; however the SFX can get a bit annoying.
Value – 9.0: You will put HOURS into this game, 800 Points for 220 levels? It’s a no-brainer.
Linear Mode
