xbox live indie game reviews

If you're looking for a summary of this quirky title, Skwug is best-described as a 'precision-teleporting-puzzle-platformer'. You play as Skwug, a little blue ball with beady eyes, who I have unofficially anointed “King of the Skwigglodites”. When he's not rolling and bounding around (as balls are wont to do), this adorable creature can teleport up to 3 times before he must touch the ground again. Though you can walk and jump, you'll find yourself traveling almost exclusively via teleportation, especially as the game progresses and the puzzles get more complex.

Each level is crafted in the spirit of the quarter-consuming conquests of yore, with its a unique arrangement of obstacles, traps, powerups and collectible items to provide plenty of challenges for even the most-seasoned platforming veterans. You must plot your course carefully to navigate Skwug to his final destination, while simultaneously mashing buttons on the fly to avoid all the perils along the way. With 50 stages littered with classic gameplay elements like switches, spikes and lasers, Skwug definitely offers a high degree of difficulty for those willing to play through Hard mode.

This game is, for lack of a better phrase, 'cute'. The graphics are simple-yet-functional, but definitely not central to the gameplay. When coupled with the goofy soundtrack (the 'island' background music, in particular), basic controls, familiar mechanics and classic arcade style, Skwug is a bizarre amalgamation of Super Mario Bros., Lode Runner and Portal.

I have only one disclaimer: Skwug is a frantic game that requires split-second timing, lightning-fast reflexes and a certain amount of gumption to play for more than 10 minutes without quitting in complete frustration. It is not for the casual puzzle game crowd or the easily defeated. You WILL fail, over and over and over, which is why you're so generously granted infinite lives. If you can't bear the agony of frying your poor little King of the Skwigglodites as you try to squeeze him into microscopic spaces between laser beams, don't even bother playing. But if you're up for a conquest that will have you cussin' up a storm and cursing the game designer's mom in tongues as you steer your happy Skwug to (eventual?) victory, give this one a shot.