Rotastic (XBLA) - Review

Written by Jeremiah Hisel, Bustercube Wednesday, 19 October 2011 11:00

Rotastic is a new Xbox arcade title from Focus Home entertainment. The game's mechanics can be compared with cut the rope, but it's deeper. The idea is to swing your character, using a grapple hook I assume, around pegs in the world and collect jewels before time runs out, or you die. Sound easy? Well, it's not, the game's early levels are simplistic, but the difficulty ramps up quickly. Soon, all kinds of killing machines, like those of Super Meat Boy, start appearing in stages. The game's visuals are cartoonish, but not in a childish way. They are a decent quality for the game, and fit pretty well with the games tone. I would liken the graphics to that of Castle Crashers, which is also a Xbox live arcade game.

The game starts immediately and has no real story to speak of, but that's OK, it's a game of skill, not story. Once you start the first level, and finally understand what is expected of you, you'll fall in to a groove. The levels will start to blow by, but that won't last for long. The game's difficulty is annoying at times, having to replay the same level over and over can really frustrate even the hardest of hardcore gamers. However, the option to skip a level is present, but it won't net you any helmets.

Helmets are rewarded at the end of each level, there are: bronze, silver, gold, and ultimate; but no platinum. To unlock new worlds, which are a collection of levels, you'll need a certain amount of helmets. So, replaying levels to get all the helmets is necessary.

The game's controls seem fine to me, although many others complain about a lack of responsiveness, but I haven't noticed that at all.

The one drawback that I can see is Rotastic's price tag, 800 Microsoft points or about $10, but I've spent $10 on less entertaining games before, such as Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and I'll bet you have to.

The game has real replayability, and multiplayer just adds value. If you're still not convinced, I suggest playing the trial, and I'm sure you'll change your mind. All in all Rotastic is a fun game, it has the right mix of challenge and reward, and that's what makes it enjoyable.