the screen again.
Dropping is thus
centrally important, as
the name of the game
suggests: as well as
your primary way of
navigating each level,
it’s also your only way
of attacking, as each
time the wizard drops
on to a new platform
he shoots a little star
that can stun enemies
and allow you to walk
into them for the coup
de grâce.
The graphics are sweet and
cheerful, the levels are fiendish, and
the gameplay is beautifully polished.
Drop Wizard is a simple game, but one
that comes highly recommended.
- Gris
Price: £4.99
Gris shows how conventional gaming
structures can combine with an
emotionally charged narrative (or,
rather, lack of narrative – but we’ll get
to that) and beautiful visuals to create
something beguiling and fresh.
The game starts out with Gris
losing her voice. She falls into a
crumbling, ruined world of towering
stone structures, colossal statues,
and angular woodlands. A stirring
score plays as you examine your
surroundings and explore this
strange world.
From a gameplay standpoint, Gris
echoes side-on platformers of the
kind that have been popular since the
days of Super Mario Bros. – perhaps
even Pitfall 2, if you’re old enough to
remember that. In short, you run, leap,
and search for items to unlock new
areas of the map.
It’s the emotional core that sets
Gris apart. There are no words, and
so you must infer what’s happening.
However, elements of struggle and
emotional distress are painfully
obvious – and obviously painful to
Gris – as you battle a morphing black18.