Ascender is a puzzle platformer for PC from the GameChanger team. With its beautiful music and visual style, it had me at the title screen. I knew I was up for a fun and delightful experience.
And it doesn’t disappoint; the game was engaging even at the first minute of playing. Art remains to be its strongest suit, and the creativity that went into art development and creating the world is more than commendable. I love the fact that the visuals were hand-drawn and have a polished-but-not-too-perfect look.
Sky is an interesting character who is likable and makes the player curious. I would love to see him with different animations when he does different things like briefly jumping, jumping down a thin platform or hurling himself using a hook mechanism.
The tutorial was paced just right, introducing the controls and objects just when the player needs to know about it while at the same time, leaving room for the player to figure out other puzzles by himself. The controls are easy to learn, and using the rune console to acquire abilities adds a bit of complexity and challenge. It is also one of the game’s unique features.
This visually captivating game with the addition of the rune system has just the right level of challenge that make for a fresh and fun puzzle platformer. I’m excited to play more of it when it comes out in 2016.
You can download the Ascender Game Prototype for PC or Mac from indiedb.com.
Featured image: Screenshot of Ascender Game Prototype at the beginning of the level
