[#2] Jetpack Penguins!

Review by kingoffangdams on Monday, January 19th 2015

Oh hey guys, I'm actually getting back to reviews! The game I've chosen will go pretty well with the weather we're getting at the moment, and it's called Polar Plunge, and the creator was Futuremillionare. If you've been on here for more than a month then you'll be likely to know this guy. He started out making all those little 'Why kids shoudn't' sort of games, but since then his game making seems to have improved. He's got a bunch of features up his sleeve, so let's find out if he deserves this one.

When I first saw the thumbnail of this game, I didn't really know what to expect, all I could tell was that it'd had a snowy sort of theme, hence the name Polar Plunge. It wasn't until yesterday that I managed to get back to gaming, so this is the first game I got to. Let's dive (or should I say plunge?) right in!

Game-play

So, it turns out that this is a puzzle game, and the aim of the game is to get your penguin guy (who looks like he has jetpacks on) to the key, or lock. You do this by avoiding hazards such as sharks, spikes, or simply getting yourself stuck somewhere, and clicking blocks to make them disappear. There are different types of blocks, red and blue, blue with the gravity effect. It seems like an interesting concept, and I immediately started enjoying it. Those who know me well know that I enjoy puzzle/strategy games, so when I played the first level I got really into it. It didn't really seem like all the other little kids games he used to make, so credit to him on this one. Although at times it did feel like you were pretty much clicking some blocks and waiting for this penguin to hurry up on the conveyor belts. But it was still fun to play. You will have to do a bit of thinking before fully attempting a level, and even then you might not win. It would often cause a chain reaction if you set it all up and let the penguin loose, so one wrong move and you're starting that level again. Speaking of losing and winning, the difficulty of this game seemed somewhat steady. As you progress, there are more block types added into the game, and hazards. Some of the levels seemed to get slightly easier at times, but that might just be me. At the end there's a boss battle, but once you get the hang of it you can easily grind through that, if you know the right pattern and time to set your penguins free. I ended up completing the game, as I ended up being one of just five (out of well over one thousand) who achieved this.

So the overall game-play seems pretty good, it was new, it was puzzling, I liked it.

Design and Visual Appeal

Did the design go well with the theme of Polar Plunge?

Of course, being a game based around snow and winter, the colour scheme was as you would expect it to be. Lots of white, a little blue here and there, it did seem to give that 'cold' feeling. Although maybe red wasn't such a good choice for some of the blocks.

Then there was the actual design of the game. It seemed pretty good. There were lots of nicely chosen graphics used, and the shapes were great, as well. Although possibly there could've been slightly more rough edges to make it seem more realistic, and maybe the patterns on the snow blocks could be different, they didn't look too much like ice or snow.

But all in all, the design was alright, and it fit with the them Futuremillionare chose.

Addictiveness

I didn't spend a lot of time playing this game, that's because I managed to finish it. If there were more levels, I would've certainly play on. The only reason I actually stopped playing at one point was because I had to, the next day I went straight back on to finish the game. It did get a bit frustrating when I kept losing on a particular level, but I kept on trying and eventually I beat the game. So I can say that this game was addicting to play.

Ratings

Suspense intensifies...

The Pros

- Addicting to play - I could've spent ages in this if it was long enough.

- Design - The design was well chosen so 'Polar' Plunge actually made sense

- Puzzles - The puzzles were great to play.

The Cons

- Difficulty was ever so slightly wavy at times.

- Snow patterns - While the colours went really well with the game, the pattern could've had a different design.

And now for the real ratings...

Final Thoughts

Polar Plunge was a really fun game, close to the best PPG I've seen on sploder. If I was an Editor, I would feature this, but it already is, so congrats on that, man!

If you liked this Futuremillionare game, check out some of his other games, link's at the top of the review!