Conflicted on this. Aban Hawkins is really cool, and I'm impressed at its multithreaded levels (lots of focus on block spacing, cycles, and mixing those two concepts to make some really intuitive levels) but I take issue with its difficulty progression.
It's initial difficulty stems from the player's lack of knowledge on how the game works; as goes for any game. I'm sure I had a weird time playing 1-1 on the original Super Mario Bros. for the first time. Like Super Mario Bros., though, 1001 Spikes doesn't take a long time to fully grasp. You can walk, run, jump, shoot knives, and all of that is required to interact and make your way through levels full of traps. It's obviously a very trial and error game, but never once did I find myself worried I'd lose all 1001 of my lives. By the third act of the game, I felt like I was operating on a higher skill level than the game anticipated. I'm not trying to say I was "TOO GOOD AT 1001 SPIKES", but I definitely shouldn't be completing some of the endgame levels on my first try, and then draining 300 lives on the next. The entire game, for this reason, feels inconsistent and not worth it.
I conquered everything the game threw at me, and while I can say I enjoyed 1001 Spikes, it perhaps is only worth a quick look. Also, the game would get 3 stars from me if the PC port wasn't handled by Nicalis and I didn't lose my entire save multiple times well into the game. Fantastic art direction, cool plot, great sound design, mediocre game experience.
It's initial difficulty stems from the player's lack of knowledge on how the game works; as goes for any game. I'm sure I had a weird time playing 1-1 on the original Super Mario Bros. for the first time. Like Super Mario Bros., though, 1001 Spikes doesn't take a long time to fully grasp. You can walk, run, jump, shoot knives, and all of that is required to interact and make your way through levels full of traps. It's obviously a very trial and error game, but never once did I find myself worried I'd lose all 1001 of my lives. By the third act of the game, I felt like I was operating on a higher skill level than the game anticipated. I'm not trying to say I was "TOO GOOD AT 1001 SPIKES", but I definitely shouldn't be completing some of the endgame levels on my first try, and then draining 300 lives on the next. The entire game, for this reason, feels inconsistent and not worth it.
I conquered everything the game threw at me, and while I can say I enjoyed 1001 Spikes, it perhaps is only worth a quick look. Also, the game would get 3 stars from me if the PC port wasn't handled by Nicalis and I didn't lose my entire save multiple times well into the game. Fantastic art direction, cool plot, great sound design, mediocre game experience.