Opac’s Journey is the first in a series of exploration titles for Xbox Live Indie Games, which tell the story of Opac Sentir on his quest to find Maya, a royal princess who has been wrongly outcast.

It’s a wonderful start to the adventure, playing out like a classic 2D Metroid game without any enemies to hinder your progress. The controls can be a bit sloppy at times, but in general this is well designed and fairly addictive stuff.

GAMEPLAY

Opac initially has barely any moves available – he can simply walk and jump – but as you explore you’ll find pedestals holding special items which will give him rather useful abilities. These powers can then be used to bypass obstacles which were originally impossible to navigate.

The level design features some really nice ideas, and you’ll barely every get lost despite the level splitting off in all directions. There are plenty of checkpoints in case you fall to your doom, and doorways everywhere to lead you to the next area.

For the first ten minutes or so the action is a little slow-going, which doesn’t bode well for the developer seeing as the demo only allows players to try it for that long! Yet this slow build-up is essential to setting the mood for the rest of the game. Soon, the music begins to pick up pace, and with each new move you discover, it feels as those Opac and the game are coming alive.

Dotted around each area are a number of roots which need to be collected to upgrade Opac’s powers. It’s not essential to upgrade every move – some of the upgrades simply make life a little easier. Later on in the game, however, you will definitely need to use your roots on specific moves to progress, so it’s a good idea to save them up throughout.

There is not a single bad guy in the entire game – instead, pits and long jumps are your enemy. As mentioned in the intro, the game feels very much like an old Metroid game, minus the constant stream of baddies trying to take your life. While this sounds like it shouldn’t really work, in practice it’s quite a winning formula, allowing for Metroid-like exploration without the hassle of shooting the same damn bugs everytime you enter a room.

There’s a great deal of charm and personality bunged in there too. When the game loads, for example, it goes straight into what appears to be the game – but as you run forward, you realise that the game’s title screen has been incorporated into play. The same goes for the end of the game – the credits are also embedded in the walls of the game. Very clever stuff indeed.

My only reason issue with the gameplay is the slightly awkward controls. Opac’s jump height cannot be altered or controls – you hit jump, and he jumps to the fullest height he possibly can. This makes it difficult to traverse certain platforms, especially when there are low ceilings. It would have been nice if tapping the button made me do a smaller jump for getting around those tighter areas.

There’s also a power which you find halfway through the game which has some serious problems. Without spoiling what the power does, using the move itself can be incredibly frustrating and quite buggy. It doesn’t ruin the game, but there are several sections in the second half of the game in which a number of curse words escaped my mouth due to this particular power failing on me.

STYLE

Opac’s Journey has been constructed in a very blocky sort of way. Square tiles make up the entire game, and their colour and texture determine whether you can touch them or not. No doubt it will sped up production of the game, and it definitely gives proceeds a retro vibe. Still, you’re left with something that isn’t exactly a looker. Apparently the next in the series is going to be entirely different, with 3D characters and environments, which is good news all round.

In comparison, Opac’s animations look really smooth and well-placed. There’s still something very retro about how he looks, allowing the sprites to mix with the backdrops perfectly, and yet at the same time he looks miles better than the rest of the graphics on show.

I talked about how the game builds up and comes alive, and this is helped along by the game’s soundtrack. Starting with generic beats and dull tones, eventually the music picks up pace and evolves into something you may even find yourself tapping your feet to. Whether this was the intention of the developers or not, it works really well to set the scene and show Opac’s rebirth.

STORY

Awaking in dark, dingy caves, Opac’s only company is a series of glowing crystals which give him guidance and offer advice. In the beginning, the majority of them don’t make a lot of sense, but it all soon starts to fall into place.

Opac soon learns he is on a mission to find princess Maya, who has been falsely accused of a crime she did not commit, and thrown out into the wastelands to fend for herself. Opac’s Journey is the first in the saga, and follows our hero as he learns what he must do, and makes his way to the surface to find the princess.

The crystals feel very much inspired by the likes of Braid and World of Goo, giving clues as to what you should be doing, but barely ever fully spelling it out. It’s a job well done, and kept me hooked all the way from start to finish.

OTHER

Ophidian Wars: Opac’s Journey is really fantastic stuff. It’s slow yet challenging, and there’s plenty to see and explore. A full playthrough takes only around 45 minutes to complete, but with a price tag of $1 (80 MS points), it’s definitely worth forking out the cash for.

Don’t bother getting the demo – as I said, the first ten minutes are a bit dull and may put you off the rest of the experience. Instead, put your 80 points down on the counter, and explore a nice bit of ‘me’ time with yourself and layers of lovely cave exploration. After Shadow Complex, this is the closest to Metroid that the Xbox has got.