Developer: PartTimeIndie
Publisher: PartTimeIndie
Platforms: PC
Will Glow the Wisp – Review
Will Glow the Wisp is a bullet hell platformer without any actual platforms… wow, think about that for a second, folks. These kinds of bullet hell games always drop an arcade feeling, you can almost imagine yourself standing behind an arcade machine with a joystick in your one hand while the other hand is frantically mashing different buttons in the hopes of making the right move. While this game is not a typical platformer, it does give off a retro feel and it would totally fit the arcade mood.
Story
This videogame is certainly not story-driven, there are no story-telling elements in Will Glow the Wisp whatsoever. If you really want to search for any sense of story then it might be about a being trying to survive in some way, at least that’s what we came up with. Even though no story is present, this doesn’t take away from the game as a whole, because making up for this lack of story are the excellent graphics, music and gameplay.
Graphics
Even though Will Glow the Wisp handles very bold, modern graphics, they are presented in such a way that they feel like an old game you just dug op from your attic, in a positive sense that is. A great thing that really stands out are the vibrant colors that this game presents, together with the fluid particles that make up the walls and almost everything else in this game. The 2D landscape that the developers put together isn’t all that artsy or interesting but it is kept simple and very cool, because it is all made up of moving particles.
Another thing that is awesome about the graphics is that they are very clear, different colors for different kinds of objects and objectives, it’s something that is often overlooked but is key to a good game: clarity. Don’t you just hate it when you’re playing let’s say, an FPS game and you can’t even distinguish different enemies from each other because everything looks so alike? This can be very unnerving because you can’t even see what you have to shoot at while bullets are still coming your way. Not in this game, no sir.
Sound
Will Glow the Wisp handles a rather upbeat and techy soundtrack but it still features calmer songs. This techy sound only adds to the arcade experience and fits the game perfectly because of its up-in-your-face color scheme and pixel look. All songs from the soundtrack are composed by Nikolas Crisci and are available on soundcloud, they are even royalty-free to use. The game cycles through the soundtrack’s songs as you play the game which has its advantages: you don’t get bored of a song as easily as you would with games that have one song per level. You probably know the feeling of being stuck in a level and having to repeat a certain part over and over again with the same frickin’ song that by now annoys the hell out of you. Well that is certainly not the case with the dubstep provided by Nikolas Crisci.
When you move your character in Will Glow the Wisp, it makes a sound, almost like a robot vacuum machine of some sort. While this is ok, in the long run it does come along as one of the things that you think about and then ask yourself: “Is this really necessary?”.
Gameplay
As mentioned before, Will Glow the Wisp is a bullet hell platformer. When you start playing this game, it tells you that a controller is recommended. Oh boy, at that point you know you’re in for a treat when you play on a keyboard. It’s no secret that bullet hell platformers are hard and sure, the later levels of this game are hard but the early levels are super easy. Will Glow the Wisp has different gradations of difficulty that it classifies the levels in, you start in the category ‘baby’ after which you play the levels in ‘child’ and so on with four categories in total.
The main goal of the game is to get your character to a big green circle after which the level explodes a weird victory screen appears, but nevertheless a nice one. There are three characters present: a green one, a blue one and the pink heart, these each have their own play style, strengths and weaknesses. Whether they are useful or not, that depends on the player of course.
Even though this game doesn’t possess much mechanics beyond moving around and dashing, there is one mechanic that pops out. Will Glow the Wisp features no hard walls, as said before, they are literally particles that you as the player can even move in between. This allows for you to cut corners and survive in situations you would otherwise find yourself dead in, even objects are made from these particles.
Conclusion
Will Glow the Wisp is a fun to play modern day bullet hell platformer that isn’t afraid to mix old with new while still doing its own thing. Grab your controller and bring the arcade to your own house with this cool, lighthearted game.
Will Glow the Wisp – Review,
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