Limbo

(EDIT: 1/30/2013 - Changed Star Rating to reflect removal of half stars from the new Giant Bomb Site. Revise up to 5stars from 4.5)

In the ever increasing high stakes world of Video Games it's becomingly increasing rare that I encounter what seems to a brand new idea. While it may not be the most challenging or addictive game ever made, Limbo's unusual focus on minimalist monochromatic design and narrative ambiguity creates an intense immersive experience in gaming that is not too be missed for Platformer fans.

Gameplay and Controls

Even for a platformer Limbo has remarkably simple minimalistic controls. The main character (an unnamed 10 year old boy often referred to by gamers as "limbo boy") is more or less limited to movement and a single action button. Limbo Boy can move left or right and jump. Pressing move and jump together will cause him to do a running jump in that direction. He can also climb certain objects and when jumping will automatically ledge grab if he can. The action button will let him flip switches and push/pull objects.

And that's it. Nothing else. Which is oddly liberating in a way, as it allows you to just react to stimuli form the game and not think about the controls really ever. The controls help immerse you into the game and the lack of any attack makes any peril Limbo Boy face feels more dangerous.

The game itself is basically a 2D puzzle platformer with a focus on navigating single hit kill environmental hazards. Limbo Boy can acquire no power ups of any kind, so players will have to rely their timing and ingenuity alone to make it through the game. Limbo Boy has no lives to speak of, but there are implied infinite chances given the game's very very forgiving checkpoint system. Which at least on your first play through you'll be very glad is there, as given the game's art style you may find yourself walking straight into death without realizing it. Despite the game's pretty short length, this isn't a game where you'll have to start over from the beginning. The game uses a chapter system but unless you actually quit and reenter the game you won't notice them. The game plays as one continuous level while you are in it, which once you've played it makes you wonder why other games don't do that.

The Puzzles themselves require a nice balance of execution and problem solving. It's not enough in Limbo to merely know what to do, in many cases you will have it time it right as well. While most of the early puzzles will be sussed out by the player in a one or two tries as the game does a good job of implying what you need to do by the environmental nature of them (moving bear traps into correct spots, using logs as a float over a pond etc), later on the player will encounter some decent head scratchers that are not as intuitively obvious. The puzzles are inventive in a fun way without being frustratingly over complicated. There are also virtually no repeated solutions while occasionally reusing a mechanic or two, so the experience feels fresh throughout.

Story

This is the feature of Limbo that will either be a dealbreaker or maker for you.

As far as the story goes there is none. At least none said directly. There is no text, no dialogue, no explanations. The most we know officially is that Limbo Boy is looking for his sister according to promotional material. Limbo Boy rises from the ground at the beginning of the game wordlessly and that's how the experience remains.

What there is however is a decent amount implied story shown through some NPC behavior and scene changes.

There is enough content here to suggest to you many things about Limbo Boy and his sister, but nothing definitive. Limbo is a real rarity in the video game world in the degree of its' deliberate ambiguity. Players who have completed Limbo frequently have intense debates over what the meaning of the game is.

I personally loved the ambiguity however there is a major environmental style transition about mid way through the game that I felt was very jarring and didn't fit with the game's vibe. Perhaps handled differently it would have kept the magic going. It's the only complaint I have with this game.

Graphics & Sound

Here is what makes this game so special. The whole experience from sound to look to feel of the control is so integrated that it really draws you into the game.

The first thing you'll notice right away is the complete lack of color. Limbo is monochromatic and while it uses every Shade of gray known to the human eye, all the objects in the play field are depicted in silhouette form only. The only thing violating this rule is Limbo Boy's two white eyes, which are constantly moving and are very expressive even in the darkest depths of the game.

The Foreground has a surprising amount of ambient objects (such as trees) occasionally obscuring your view, but never in a way that impedes play. The background also is vibrant and full of detail using primarily a lighter gray color. The game utilizes the old trick of having the background and foreground moves at different speeds to the play field adding to the illusion of a robust world. The objects and environments on the edges of the screen blur a bit, and come gradually into sharp clarity as you approach them adding to the illusion of distance.

All of which is moot, if there isn't interesting things in them. Fortunately there are wonderful things in them, wonderfully animated creatures and forest scenes permeate the levels. Creating a menacing and haunting vibe. Simply put the environments are gorgeously drawn.

Perfectly complementing the look of the Limbo is the sound and music. The sound effects in general are very understated, even enemy NPCs are pretty quiet. There are no death shrieks or screams to speak of. What is there is largely inanimate sounds. Flies buzzing, circular saws whining as they cut. There really isn't a score to speak of, but where is there is very subtle and atmospheric. The music will spike up in times of peril adding to sense of danger. while there isn't any tune or melodies you'll take away from Limbo, the sounds really flesh out the experience.

Limbo Boy's physics are amazingly well developed for a simple 2-d platformer. Each jump feels as it "should" and there is no movement he makes that doesn't feel somewhat realistic. This gives the player an immediate sense right away how Limbo boy will handle under virtually any circumstance.

There is a similar level of integrity which Limbo Boy affects his environment, running down a slope will knock stones loose. Grass will rustle when he walks by, Logs in water will dip slightly when he alights on them.

Furthermore when Limbo Boy runs into hazards there is a frightening number of ways which he is rendered dieing. With a morbid sense of fascination I'd chuck him into spikes or a giant circular saw blade just to see how he'd come apart. I don't think I ever saw the exact same animation twice.

All this fidelity gives a sense of being there. I found myself losing track of time when playing Limbo

Replay Value/Length

There's no denying it, this game is pretty short. It took me about 6 hours and I wasn't exactly cruising as I was messing around.

That being said by the time it was over, I was ready for it to be done. I don't think given the ambiguous nature of the story that adding any additional length would have really added much. But if you don't like short games, this will likely not be a game for you. Currently the game can be had for under 15 bucks so even at that length it's a decent value.

There is a little bit of replayability here. while the game really is best on it's first play through, there are 13 different achievements to get, a secret level and a achievement that requires completion with only 5 deaths and one sitting.

Most people will only play through this game once.

Verdict

This is one the best game experiences I've had in a very long time. It's open to interpretation story and immersive experience is unlike anything I've really ever played. It really is a triumph of design. It's joy to see something pretty different in setting and artistic direction.

If you like platformers and new things, 15 bucks or less there is no reason to not give this unique game a try.