GAMING
blob that transforms into a shrieking
giant bird, or face watercolour splats
that paint the gaming canvas red.
That’s not to say this game is
without hope. From the off, there
are grin-inducing moments, such
as when you first grapple with the
transformative powers of Gris’s dress,
or spot a tiny apple-munching stalker
tracking you through the woods. A
bittersweet tale, then, and one you
absolutely should take, if you hanker
for games that aspire to transcend
the medium.- Linn: Path of Orchards
Price: £2.99
Most platform games are reassuringly
and resolutely solid when it comes
to the actual platforms. When
you’re sprinting along,
grabbing bling, and
hopping on enemy
heads, there’s a good
chance any platform
you land on will stay
there. Those that vanish
are the exception,
rather than the rule.
Linn has no truck with
that, instead having
apparently decided
its levels are crazed
clockwork contraptions
harbouring ambitions to become a
deadly fairground.
Your very first experience finds you
already running towards the level’s
exit, and you watch as the platform
starts to tip before Linn reaches her
goal. Soon, you face much tougher
tests. Levels spin and wheel. Exits
appear nailed to ceilings that seconds
later become floors, while you leap
into the abyss, trying in a split-second
to figure out where you should land.
It’s dizzying and confusing, but you
soon recognise there’s a mechanical
logic to everything on the screen.
Each level can – if you get your timing
precisely right – be completed in a set
number of moves. Gold shards that
appear impossible to reach can be
collected – if you crack the sequence19.