Pressured – Review
Numbers, numbers, numbers. They’ll pop into existence and then fade away. The tension mounts and the pressure builds. This game is more than just a number puzzler. Three quotes will give you some clues as to what the game is about. “Pressure is calming to the nervous system.” “The essence of mathematics is not to make the simple things complicated, but to make the complicated things simple.” “Go deep down enough into anything and you’ll find mathematics.”
Story
The story is written by Nicholas Gordon who started writing poetry seriously during the 1980’s. His work you’ll read in the game is from a substantial list of works. It fits the theme of the game, it’s dark and sinister. It’s a full story, which you’ll unlock as you play. What I noticed however was that you don’t unlock them in order. What can be said about the writing is: it’s compelling, beautiful and moving, only come together if you can read them in sequence.
Sound
The music is lithe and clear, little bells tinkle as you click the numbers. They help distract your mind from pressure meter building. The beat and the synthesizer music which follow add the dark undertone of the game. The meter filling up has no sound. This helps with keeping your stress levels in check. There’s only one soundtrack., which will loop throughout the game. You can mute the sound in the main menu. A voice will notify you when the pressure has built up too far. “Game over”
.Graphics
The setting is 12 television screens projecting numbers. A meter builds up over time on the right hand side. The numbers on the screen have a gothic feeling to them and these televisions screens add to a steam punk setting. The numbers on the screen will flash brightly and then slowly fade away in a couple of seconds. In the left hand upper corner you’ll find the number you have to achieve. When you’ve reached the goal, the number will increase and you’ll be able to see it before the next round starts. What bothered me slightly was the fading of the numbers, it adds to the atmosphere, but in later levels it is quite tedious to see you’ve misclicked the number because it was fading and had changed at the last possible nanosecond. Maybe it’d be more clear if the numbers stayed static for a set amount of time before they switched screen.
Gameplay
The game is extremely simple in its design, layout and the goal you have to achieve. Add the numbers on the television screen to get the number in the left hand upper corner. It’s that easy. When you finish a sum, the last number you use to complete the sum will become a bomb, which when clicked will wipe the screens and reset the values. When you get into the higher levels you’ll have to use the multiplier to get the higher numbers. Succesfully make the sum and the pressure meter will decrease, fail and the meter increases.
Clear levels on easy mode to get the medium difficulty mode. When you beat levels on medium diffulty mode, you’ll earn Hard mode. The difference lies that the meter will increase faster and you’ll have to be really focused on the numbers you click. Finishing a level means you’ll have to complete the sum 5 times. So by the fifth time you’re completing the task, four bombs will be active. This makes it so you have to be creative with your numbers. It adds a layer of depth, so it doesn’t become a mere point and click puzzle game. When you’ve finished a round your score will be multiplied by the level. So you’ll soon be picking up higher scores as you get more proficient with the numbers.
Pressured is an extremely addictive because of its simplicity. It’s easy to pick up but difficult to master. Playing this game will give you insight in your problem solving skills as you are forced to use different numbers every single time. The numbers you have to achieve every time are also random, so you can’t predict them to gain easy access to higher levels.
Conclusion
You’ll pick up Pressured and play for hours. Or just until you ‘Game Over’. It can be used as a way to break your attention away from a task, or strengthen your efficiency with numbers. The poetry you unlock is an extra which makes this game even more compelling.
Pressured – Review,
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