DIYgamer

Building is Rebuilding…Bob Came in Pieces [Review]

First and foremost, Bob Came in Pieces is about the titular character’s horrible commute to work one day. Our many-tentacled hero crash lands on Earth, and is tasked with finding the parts to his ship before he’s able to leave the pull of the planet and head home.

Developed by Ludosity Interactive, the game features a colorful game world and great physics. You traverse 14 different chapters, and within each level must hunt down up to five different pieces of your ship that have gone missing. Each new element of your ship helps you solve new puzzles, so it’s beneficial to track down as many as possible, though it’s not required to get them all. Offhand, I’d say I collected about eighty percent of the pieces in my play through of the title.

Gameplay

The game is setup like a two dimensional platform title, which is bordered by walls of stone and ice, and capped at the top with bridges, trees and other barriers. Using your ships’ thrusters, you pilot your way in all directions to help find the exit point.

As you encounter new puzzles, you’ll discover “build” areas marked by a crossed hammer and wrench. You can then enter the build screen, to rearrange your ship as needed for the next puzzling section of the level. The area also serves as a check point if you get stuck and need to reset to the nearest area. You can’t die in Bob Came in Pieces, just get annoyed.

While the idea of collecting pieces to your spaceship makes it sound like you’re building up an arsenal of weaponry, Bob Came in Pieces is first and foremost a puzzle game. The pieces to collect include three varieties of thrusters, a pull beam, a push beam, and a multitude of different pipe-like pieces to help lengthen and twist your main elements around. The circular body of the ship has eight inputs, to which you can attach these pieces. You’re tasked with assigning keys to each piece of function, which simplifies your ability to get around. But I’ll admit it took me several levels of using the pull beam before I realized I could assign it to the spacebar and not have to pair it with my “up” thrusters (which can be a frustrating experiment in physics). Each build area has you reassembling your ship so that you can fit a tractor beam in a particularly tight hole, or set flame to bushes which are hiding beneath a skinny well. While the build system is intuitive and enjoyable, the constant need to rebuild your ship, rather than enjoy your latest design, grows tiring. I lost interest in toying with ship design halfway through the journey. But luckily, the game features a template save feature, so that you can come back to your most useful designs, or favorite combo of pieces when needed. I must admit it was disappointing not to be able to stick with a particularly clever design for longer than a few screens.

The main gameplay surrounds several types of puzzles: using your thrusters to set fire to bushes hindering your path, using your speed and weight to smash through different kinds of barricades, using your pull beam to either lift weights or move switches, or using your push beam to shoot objects into designated areas that will snag you another useful element. There are variations of these, and later levels introduce gears and other complex machinery, but the main puzzles remain relatively similar. It’s a completionist’s game, because there were puzzles too trying for the average gamer, who may be dissuaded by the unusual challenges within. But knowing that there’s one more hidden piece in a level, or finding that impossible secret passage is sure to delight the kind of player who likes to go above and beyond.

The physics are a particular strength to this title. Your ship goes up and down in what I can only assume are a realistic way (we are talking about a spaceship, here) and lugging boxes and poles with your pull beam are incredibly dependent on how you weighted your ship. So as much as I want to complain about the frustration of dragging elements around the game world, it’s really the players (my) fault for not balancing my ship properly. If your thrusters aren’t evenly balanced, or if one side has a stronger thruster than the other, you’re going to find yourself tipping over and difficult to control. But the build feature gives you the power to fix it, so it’s up to you to learn the basics of rocket science (which aren’t really rocket science).

While there are a lot great elements at play, I did find the repetitive aspects of the puzzles and building to be a huge detractor from the overall pace and enjoyment of the game. You must know that you’re getting into a puzzle game and not expect a more adventurous pursuit. While adult puzzle fans will like the title, I can see it being more popular with children. And for the kind of player that likes to complete a collection, or face time trials, then this game is definitely worth its price of admission.

Style

The cartoony graphics are well executed in the game. The grass looks lush, the ice cold, flames dance about as you inevitably ram yourself into different lantern holders. But perhaps it’s because the ship is alien to the world, but it never looks as good as its surroundings.

Certain elements have a three dimensional appearance, such as depth to caverns and size to metal gates, despite the game’s function in two dimensions. This stylistic touch adds polish to this exercise in physics puzzles. I ran the game on the highest settings throughout, and enjoyed its smooth edges and beautiful details.

Story

It’s about an alien trying to get to work, who doesn’t quite make it (unless you put your ship back together). It ties up nicely with inspirational words about always trying harder at your job, but in the long run, the story isn’t an important element to the game. It’s simple and only serves as a framework as to why this alien is on the planet in the first place.

The story frames appeared hand-drawn and did not fit stylistically with the rest of the title. Frankly, I felt they were a weaker graphical element, and it would have been better to keep the story hinged on the 3D looking two dimensional world. But as I already mentioned, the story is not a critical element of this game.

Everything Else

The music and sound effects were two other elements that ended up being too repetitive. Clinks and thuds from running into things, and hearing the same tunes over and over again just made them feel as they were tacked on late in the development process. A more subtle soundtrack could have aided the overall experience, but its current abundance of high pitched ditties just aren’t adding positive elements to the title.

As I’ve said several time, it’s a puzzle game. Different parts will make you scratch your head in frustration and then smile once you figure out its clever little secret. Players looking for an adventure will be disappointed, so it’s best to know what you’re getting into.

Bob Came in Pieces is available directly from Ludosity Interactive or can be downloaded through Steam, GamersGate and Direct2Drive for $9.99. Keep your eye out for sales, because it’s already been discounted on several occasions since its release.