Rochard: An Indie
Game Review
Delving into the world of Rochard, I didn’t know what to expect;
having been a part of a Humble Indie Bundle I bought I while back, I wasn’t
really sure what to expect. What I found was a very surreal and stylized tale
and a fascinating puzzle game that was equally fun and frustrating, requiring a
bit of polish to feel completely deserving of a place on my shelf.
Presentation
The game opens with a well done
cutscene and a blaringly fun tune, Grinder’s
Blues by Poets of the Fall, which acts as a really magnificent start,
giving players a strong Western tone to be the backdrop of this interstellar
expedition.
The story, as a whole, is very
basic; John Rochard, a miner in this futuristic realm, is about to have his
branch of the company Skyrig shut down, when he suddenly discovers a large
amount of minerals that, in the story, are utilized as fuel. However, this is
revealed to be hiding something more, as former friend and ally, Maximillion, hires
a team of thugs, the Wild Dogs, to kill off the mining team and take whatever
mysterious prize is hidden beneath the rocks for himself. Rochard and his
female compatriot, Skylar, must find a way to survive Max and the Wild Dogs
while stopping whatever villainous plot he has in store. As characters,
everyone is very single-dimensional, playing their part well, but not really
creating a deep or mind-blowing tale. Some of it seems somewhat skipped over,
as many details are left out or forgotten about over the course of the story.
Not much is really explained for that matter, a lot of it lost in translation
from the creator’s mind to the screen. And the finale is sorely lacking any
form of conclusion, making me wonder if some sort of sequel is intended or if
this is simply… it. Other than the start of each section, of which there are
four, all cutscenes are in-game, and range from well done to incredibly
awkward. Limbs and expressions don’t really match each scenario, changing almost
comically moment to moment, making emotional moments seem silly. However, the
voice-acting that is utilized throughout the entire game is very well done, and
really adds to the atmosphere.
The look and feel of the world
is very stylistic, a brightly colored cell-shaded outer space, filled with both
futuristic-looking bases and casinos to deep rock crevices and winding tunnels to
traverse. Admittedly, only three locales are used throughout the whole thing,
and it did feel sometimes like I was walking through the same environment
repeatedly, but the look and feel of this other world did enough to envelope
me. The enemies look cool as well, although aren’t terribly diverse. I believe
there were only seven or so different enemies to fight overall, most of these
being carbon copies of each other with slight differences, but I never became
bored with the experience, as there was enough challenge present to keep me
going.
There’s only one mode present,
the single-player story, so don’t come into this expecting a whole lot. Options
are also minimal, leaving me with the game and… that’s about it.
Gameplay
This is where the game shines. Rochard feels like a Metroid game, but set
in a brighter, Western atmosphere and without the stress on exploration. Sure,
there are a set of hidden collectables scattered throughout the game, but you
can only reach them if you can find a way to do it then and there; otherwise,
it’s gone forever. However, I wouldn’t worry too much about collecting them
unless you like the challenge, as there is no way of telling if you collected
them all at the end of the game. That’s right, by the time I finished, I have
no idea if I obtained each of the collectables or not. This is a serious let
down, as I had worked hard to obtain them with no reward or pay-off at all.
This feels like something that should have been caught much earlier in
production, and is a serious issue.
Moving away from that, Rochard
is equipped with a G-Lifter, a form of gun used in mining that allows you to
pick up and throw boxes throughout the levels. Though simple at first, you
quickly acquire a number of upgrades to this little device, such as
anti-gravity, explosives, and a built-in blaster to puzzle you’re way through
the environments and take out the baddies. But, the game encourages you not to
just shoot enemies, but rather to use your wit and cunning to take out enemies.
Sure, the gun works fine, but it was more thrilling personally to use my
surroundings to my advantage. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t Mark of the Ninja or anything, but it
still adds a layer of depth to it. In terms of puzzles, this game can keep you
on your toes with some honestly clever areas to traverse, leaving me pondering what
to do for extended periods of time. However, none of these are difficult enough
where you have to look it up at any point. The game is difficult, though, as I
died numerous times. This became both exciting and grueling; for, though I felt
the challenge in attempting these levels, it could become tedious and
infuriating to play one portion of the game too many times. The puzzles
themselves, however, greatly varied in terms of difficulty, as some towards the
end felt a little too easy, whereas others at the start were fairly hard. There
was no real balancing of difficulty as a whole, but rather one varied
fluxuation of difficulty throughout, which, in a strange way, I kind of
enjoyed.
Music
This is, by far, Rochard’s crowning achievement. Besides
the opening tune, Markus Captain Kaarlonen and Burt Kane provide their musical
expertise to treat your ear buds to an adventure all their own. This tunes
always fit well in this science-fiction setting, and can play out like the score
of a film, adding a lot of gripping emotion to the story. As I listen to it the
soundtrack now while wrting, I can tell you that this CD will be one to keep in
your library.
Overall
Verdict
I’m not really sure how to feel
about this game at the end of the game. I truly enjoyed the ingenuity of the
puzzles, style and overall tone, voice acting, challenge, and wonderful music. Yet,
the awkward story, frustration, limited locales, lacking modes, and broken
collectables really hindered my experience. I feel that, with just a little
more polish, this could have been one of the greats. However, this is still a
solid game, and I plan to keep it in my library so that I can return to this
fascinating world, and I hope for a sequel to improve upon the solid foundation
presented here.
7.5/10
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