While I like to try and live my life in a constant state of figurative rebirth, there's only so much a man can do to keep from getting bored. Boredom just sort of creeps up on you. The fact that you're actually reading this post indicates you have been in such a state for some time now.
However, fear not, unenthused reader! I bring tidings of effective time wasters, for those "busy dying." My suggestions to you today come in the form of the titular Simple Gaming Pleasures. I will present two items of interest and a fun little website to keep yourself occupied during that slow period at work, or as I like to call it, 6:30 to 2.
My first and most hearty recommendation is World of Goo. You can find the free demo here, for both Windows and Mac OS machines. Woo-hoo!
I think there's a loose narrative structure here, involving some Goo Corporation trying to collect goo for a goo factory or something. Essentially you construct little erector-set styled bridges out of gooey nodules in an attempt to get little globs of goo from the beginning, where goo globs have just sort of collected, to the end, where there's a pipe which sucks up the remaining goo globs once you've reached it. I'm saying "goo" a lot, aren't I?
The catch is, there's a limited amount of goo globs, and you also have to use the globs to create your bridge, so the less globs you use to build your structure, the more goo you collect at the end. Each level has a set minimum goo count you must achieve to complete, so goo frugality is the key. Along the way, you'll run into hazards, like spikes or spinning gears which will destroy any goo unfortunate enough to touch them, forcing you to think. The horror!
Its deceptively complex, highly addictive, and cute and colorful and all that good stuff. Plus, as an engineer, I just eat this puzzle stuff up! For $20 you can download the full game from the aforementioned website, at a brick-and-mortar joint, or even download the Wii-ware version on that little Nintendo-machine-that-could (...could use more quality games, that is).
My second game is called Crayon Physics Deluxe. I have to be honest here: I haven't played this yet. The developer, kloonigames, is hard at work on a Mac version, but right now only PC users can enjoy this one. You guys can get the free demo here. But here's an excerpt from the review from IGN.com that caught my attention:
...On each of the game's 70 levels, you must guide a red ball to touch a yellow star. Aside from being able to give the ball a slight nudge to the left or the right, you can't manipulate it directly. What you must do is draw solutions on the paper so that the ball can reach the star; you might need to draw a rope bridge, create a pulley system, draw a series of ramps, or more to set up interlocking constructions. While many puzzles have easy solutions to them, you can have fun and let your imagination soar...
To play this, I'll have to put it on my work laptop (*shh!*), but I love the crayon-on-construction-paper art style from the videos/pics I've seen, and I can't wait to give it a shot. You can download the full game for $19.95.
Finally, I will leave you with a fun little freeware-full website: http://www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/. Here you will find incredibly simple, generally slower paced games of the pastel palette variety. You can do things like navigate a deep sea diver to treasure at the bottom of the ocean, or catch an assortment of falling fruit with a trio of monkeys (watch for the bombs!).
You may have noticed that these games are of the more family-friendly variety.
"Squish," you might say. "What about the bored masses who crave explosions, blood, and bloody explosions?!"
Another post for another day, young grasshopper. But have you heard of Chicago Ted?
If you have some other virtual time wasters, let me know! I'm always on the lookout.
orisinal!! who was the cool person who told you about that one?
ReplyDeleteUm, either you or Kelly... I once played the falling fruit / monkey game for over an hour straight... in class...
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