xbox live indie game reviews

I didn't have high hopes for Spaceman. Going simply on the screenshots and the description, it looked like yet another game based on the platform starter kit provided by Microsoft. And not even a good one--the screenshots look ugly as hell! I don't know if they're just badly compressed or weirdly distorted, but the game looks much better than advertised. The premise is fairly simple: you start on a platform, and you must gather a bunch of coins and a key before making your way to the exit of each level.

Your spaceman can move only left or right, either on a flat plane or up/down one stair step. The majority of gameplay involves building staircases to pick up the various collectibles. Pressing "X" while facing any direction will leave a square block of "bubbles" which you can use as a stair step. Alternately, you can drop a bomb to the left or right, conveniently destroying any bubbles or wooden structures. Fall onto some spikes or get shot by a cannon and you're dead. The whole thing is deliciously retro, so much so that I wish I could've used the d-pad instead of the analog thumb-stick.

The levels I played (half a dozen or so) were all well thought out and took multiple tries to finish. I like that they're not incredibly simple to figure out, but I thought it was annoying that I had to completely restart from scratch if I failed. It would've been nice if the level reset (including the key for the exit), but any coins you'd collected stayed collected. Had I not been more determined to check the game out, this fact alone would've probably made me put the game down after three or four levels (I was 99% done and accidentally commited suicide with a bomb, which up until that point I didn't know could kill you).

If you like logic puzzles (I like logic puzzles), Spaceman is definitely worth the 240 point price tag. It's not easy, though, and unlike commercial releases I doubt there are going to be any FAQs online if you get stuck. If you don't like logic puzzles, you're basically spending $3 so your XBox can piss you off. If you like giving your brain a bit of exercise, look past the terrible screenshots and give it a shot!