LaserCat Shoots His Way Into My Heart

I may occasionally search the XBLA Indie Game section for an interesting game, but I've only made two purchases to date. Mainly this is a result of the terrible XBL interface at which you purchase points to purchase games -- I don't want to spend five dollars to buy a game that is technically only one dollar. If it (and many more things) were set up like Apple's iTunes store, then I'd probably spend a bit more.

Regardless, LaserCat was brought to my attention this week and after downloading the trial version, I was completely enamored by it. Here is a simple little game that tries hard and really has a simplistic Metroid-Vania feel to it. Sure, there may not be any power-ups, and it's really nothing more than a puzzle-platformer, but it's charm greatly exceeds its simplistic nature.

You play as LaserCat, who is trying to save OwlFriend from the great evil Wizzord's castle. There are 30 keys to find, spread across some-255 rooms, all containing some individual challenge, from lava to falling to moving enemies. As such, each room has a name and these names give each room a little more depth, which managed to kind of hook me. Many of them contain references to mainstream game series such as Banjo-Kazooie, Mario, and even Sonic, while also referencing other indie-esque games like Braid.

Note, however, these are references, not satires -- the relationship only goes so far.

The music, oddly enough, is all royalty free music from Kevin Macleod. Because of this, I recognized a lot of the music pieces right off the bat and was, incidentally, even a little more charmed as a result of their use. The music makes it feel like an indie game, even though they are edited really well to blend together.

There's not a whole lot to say for this game. For a dollar (albeit a difficult dollar), it's worth it if you're a fan of classic platforming. It may only last about one to two hours if you intend to complete everything, but there is some fun to be found. It turned out to be one of those games that I just want to show to all my friends, which is what I intend to do.

Pros:

Charming indie platformer

Only one dollar

Cute characters and good humor

Really tight controls

Cons:

Way too short!