A trip well worth taking
Earlier this year, I was introduced to the rather unusual concept of Pong as a rhythm game in the form of Bit.Trip Beat, a downloadable title released via Nintendo's WiiWare service. With its pixelated retro-style visuals, and fun, challenging gameplay, I was hooked instantly. And just when the addiction began to wane, Bit.Trip Core came around and pulled me right back in. And thanks to many small improvements, like a new control style, Bit.Trip Core becomes a much better game than its predecessor – albeit with a couple returning shortcomings.
Core picks up where Beat left off, but, just like in Beat, the story is so convoluted and ambiguous that its impossible to tell what's going on, or the meaning behind it, for that matter. So I still don't know what it's about, just yet.
But then, none of you are playing these games strictly for the narrative, are ya (I know I'm not!)? You're playing 'em for the frantic challenging gameplay. Which, at its core (no pun intended), is the same as it was in Beat – minus the new control style, that is. As instead of moving a paddle up down to hit pixels known as "beats," you're a plus shaped object in the middle of the screen, which can fire beams of light in four different directions to hit beats. This works really well, and fixes the small accuracy issues that the previous control style had. It also makes the game harder in some ways, and easier in some ways.
That last bit is due to the fact that the new control style doesn't have a learning curve like the previous one did. All you have to do is press down a direction on the directional pad, and press the 2 button, and you'll fire the aforementioned beam. It doesn't get much simpler than that. And as for it makes the game harder, it's due to the fact that, since you're stuck in the center of the screen, the beats come at you from all sorts of directions which makes it hard to figure out which direction you need to shoot in, especially when the whole screen is flooded by beats (which doesn't happen too often, thankfully). But, as with Beat, a little trial and error, and you'll be making your way through the games three levels with ease.
Speaking of which, that reminds me of one of the returning shortcomings that I mentioned earlier: The number of levels. Now three levels isn't bad considering the length of 'em, and the $6 price, and for Beat I didn't mind that. But for Core, I was left wanting more at the end. Another level or two would have been a great addition. It's not a huge problem, but it was definitely disappointing. The other one is the continued lack of leaderboards. An odd exclusion, considering the score based nature of the game.
Visually, Core is pretty much identical to Beat, as it retains the stylish 8-bit visuals of its predecessor. So everything has a simple, pixelated look to it. And as you do well, the visuals get crazier, like when you enter "super mode" – which continuously gives you points, regardless of whether or not your hitting beats – a rainbow of colors floods the screen, giving it a very "trippy" look, one could say. And when you do bad, the visuals lose their color, and end up with black and white visuals, which looks similar to Pong. The main difference visually between Core and Beat, is that the backgrounds that scroll by during levels aren't anywhere near as distracting as they were in Beat, which is good since it allows you to have an easier time hitting beats, as well as see them. Audio wise, the game uses lots of beeps and boops, which fit the retro feel of the game. It also features some great chiptune music, which further helps convey the retro feel.
Shortcomings aside, Bit.Trip Core is a superb game. The gameplay is still a blast to play, the new control style is a huge improvement over the previous one, and is just all-around better game. And at $6 (or 600 Nintendo points), the game is a steal. Anyone seeking a good challenge, or just a fun simple game in general, would do well to check out Bit.Trip Core.
