[Application] - Hexagons, Hexagons Everywhere!

Review by plateepus on Thursday, July 6th 2017

Introduction

Hello, Sploderians! NaZa here. Today, I'll review Hexagon Skylands, a PPG made by YellowWaffle. When I saw the thumbnail of the game, I actually smiled! It's full of hexagons - the clouds, the grass, the ground! The way it's laid out is really captivating. That made me want to play the game, it's just a really inviting thumbnail.

Story

The story goes like this; Monsters called Dogoos are invading our world, and we must defeat them to claim back our land. The story is pretty stereotypical, since there's quite a lot of games with the same story as this one. However, that's not as important as the implementing of the story in-game, since the story can be a huge cliche but it won't matter if it's excellently presented in the game itself, and Hexagon Skylands did just that. There isn't much traces of the story, but you can feel it through progression in-game - the levels become larger and more complex, and the enemies become more dangerous.

Gameplay

Honestly, the game is pretty easy. The first few levels are a walk in the park since there is enough room for error with three extra shots per level, however you need to be careful because if you don't pay much attention to the game you'll die pretty quickly. Those pink nuisances who throw homing missiles at you make a pretty nasty encounter, but can be easily dealt with if you're cautious enough. The harder levels are even easier than the first ones simply because you get too much ammo to fight enemies with. Not to mention the player controls are pretty sluggish too, so that makes it a bit more challenging, too.

The Bosses are really disappointing, The giant Dogoo is really, really easy. It feels like a breather compared to the previous level, when it should have been the opposite. Same goes with the Dogoo leader. He does have homing missiles and some walls, but it's all too slow to pose slight, if any, threat to the player. Basically, the overworld levels are harder than the boss fights themselves, which is a real pity since the game is gorgeous. There aren't many advanced effects - the game is kept simple and tidy. The gates opened by a key seem a bit beginner, but they're placed alright.

Scenery

As I've said, the look of the game itself is extremely captivating. Very gimmicky, but works really well. Seeing everything made out of hexagons is undoubtedly cute, and it delivers really well too! However, after the first few levels, it does seem a bit boring and washed out. In the latter levels, there is a bit of variety, with some houses and even a hexagonal lake appearing, however, it still seemed the same. If more variety was in the levels, like having an icy hexagon level due to low temperatures in the sky, it would've been better. After all, you must use your Science knowledge somewhere!

However, the game must be applauded for not using any graphics except for players and enemies. Every single bit in this game, every single environment piece, everything is created manually. That's a real effort. It does slow your computer, but really slightly and if you're playing on a newer machine (unlike me), the lag will be pretty much nonexistent. The skies didn't have much detail, obviously, except the clouds. However, it would've been better if more background effects like rain, snow, fog and smoke were used, because at some points the sky looked really dull.

PROS:

- captivating design

- not much lag

- excellent environment without graphics

CONS:

- underwhelming bosses

- lack of variety

- slow controls

SCORING:

Story: 6/10

Scenery: 9/10

Gameplay: 4/10

TOTAL: 19/30

Overall, Hexagon Skylands is a gorgeous game with excellent usage of shapes with substitute graphics perfectly. However, it did seem beginner, especially with the simple effects and lack of variety. It's not an excellent game, however it does stand out from other games due to a very original theme.